


Wild Thing

by outlawjames13



Series: Wild Things [1]
Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Economy Crash, F/M, How Do I Tag, Like they're famous but it's not how it happened in real life, Sort of AU, Summer Jobs, non-canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-19
Updated: 2016-01-05
Packaged: 2018-04-05 04:40:31
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 65
Words: 203,705
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4166253
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/outlawjames13/pseuds/outlawjames13
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The recent worldwide economic crash has left several people without jobs, and, in the case of One Direction, stuck in the southern part of America without a dime to their names. They are hired on as ranch hands for the summer at the Rocking R Ranch in Alabama. While they are there, they meet Laura Johnson, a rough and tough girl from the backwoods who's had to work for everything she's ever wanted. Their new boss' daughter is about as different from what they're used to as a girl can get, and the lads are in for the ride of their lives when they tangle with this Wild Thing.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Wild Thing

A large grey van rolls down an empty back road in Alabama. Inside the van are six people, and lots of suitcases. Enough to hold everything that five of the passengers had packed for what was supposed to be their next tour through America. The last town they passed was the better part of a day's drive behind them. The van's destination? A 100000 acre ranch in the middle of nowhere.

But the van isn't important. The five boys riding in it are the important part. They are internationally famous pop stars, currently stuck in America due to the recent worldwide economic crash. They were without jobs for the summer until they were hired to work on a ranch. The very ranch they are rolling down the road toward.

They are One Direction.

<><><>

“Are we there yet?” Louis whines for about the gazillionth time from the backseat of the overly crowded van. He’s sitting next to a sleeping Harry. In the middle of the van are a bickering Zayn and Niall, while a quiet Liam sits in the passenger seat, next to Paul, who is driving.

“Not yet,” Paul replies patiently, already having been asked the question at least seven times in the past five minutes. 

“How much longer?” Louis asks, his patience wearing paper thin. They had been in this van all day, just driving. The scenery had been the same for the past hour and a half, even their now long-forgotten game of I Spy was useless, everything out here had looked the same for miles. 

“Almost there. Just a couple more hours,” Paul replies.

“Why does it have to be out in the middle of nowhere?” Liam asks, confused.

“It’s a big ranch. They need lots of room for all the animals,” Paul says, reciting what he had been told by the ranch owner when he had asked the same question. "Maybe you lads should get some sleep. It'll help pass the time."

"Alright."

<><><>

“Lads, wake up!” Paul shouts.

“Are we there yet?” asks Louis.

“No, he just woke you up so he could tell you we aren’t there yet,” Liam says sarcastically. 

“We’re almost to the gates. If you look out the window, you can see the land you’ll be working on,” Paul says, interrupting their mini sass battle. 

The boys all turn to look out the window at the rolling hills, open pastures, and barbed wire fencing. The sturdy fence follows the road, keeping the animals inside from running out and getting hit. The grass on the hills bends in the breeze, waves of light bouncing off of the tops as the sun reflects off of the grass. 

“It’s so… big,” says Niall.

“And green,” adds Zayn.

As the van turns down another road, a small herd of about twenty brown and black cattle comes into view, with a horse, rider, and a big dog behind them.

“Whoah,” the boys say in unison when they see the rider more clearly.

She’s tall and lean, with dark brown hair pulled back from her face in a long, thick braid down her back. Her face is shaded by a white cowboy hat, and she wears a red tank top, and dark jeans cover her long legs.

She skillfully guides the horse along behind the cattle and, with the help of the dog, slowly moves the herd down  the small hill to the river below. 

“Take a good look lads. That’s what you’ll be doing all summer,” says Paul, snapping the boys back to reality.

“Are you talking about the girl or riding horses?” asks Louis. This makes all the boys chuckle quietly. 

“He’s obviously talking about riding horses, you twat,” Harry says, lightly hitting his best friend in the back of the head while laughing. 

By this time, they are passing the cattle, dog, and girl, and she turns and sees them.

“Wow,” they all say when they see her face.

She has high cheekbones, her bright brown eyes striking against her tanned skin, with a few renegade strands of hair that hang in her face.

Her full lips part into a pearly white smile when she sees the van. She lifts a lean arm, her hand waving for a moment, then she turns her attention back to the cattle, just as the van rolls around a curve in the road and she is out of sight. 

“Alright lads, calm down,” says Paul, “you’re about to meet your new boss.”

“Who was that?” asks a dazed Niall. 

“Your boss’ daughter. She runs the working part of the ranch, from what I’m told. Her father used to run the whole outfit, but he got hurt and now he just does the buisness side of it. She’ll probably be the one giving you orders while you’re here.”

“Do you know anything about her?” Harry asks.

“Her name is Laura, she’s-”

“No, no, like, what’s she like?” Harry interrupts.

“From what her father says, she’s a little rough around the edges, doesn’t like to open up about herself to others,” Paul replies as the van rolls to a stop in front of the large metal gate that is the entrance to the ranch. 

“Are you making us walk all the way up the rest of the driveway?” Zayn whines.

“What?! I can’t even see the end of it! You expect us to walk that far?” Louis shouts.

“No, I’m telling you something, and I want you to know it before you get out of the van,” Paul starts. “You’re famous, but that won’t get you any special treatment here. You’ll just be hired workers, nothing more. People out here don’t really listen to your kind of music, so they probably won’t know who you are.”

“Which means we won’t get mobbed! This is great!” Zayn says.

“Exactly. That’s why management chose this job for you lads. It comes with room and board, and it pays well.  You should only be here for three months or so. Until you earn enough money to fly you back home. I’m sure that you’ll be hearing some news once in awhile about what the situation with going home is. Remember that you  _can_  be fired from this job for acting crazy, so don’t go doing anything crazy, alright?”

Five heads nod, saying they understand, and the van begins to roll down the long, winding driveway again.


	2. Chapter 2

Trees are planted on either side of the wide driveway, shading it from the blazing June sunlight. 

After about half a mile, the driveway widens, then loops back around into itself. On the right side of the driveway is a large two story log building, with windows on either side of a large wooden door, which is behind a very large front porch. On either side of the front porch steps are two worn wooden hitching posts, and currently both of them are unoccupied.

Next to the house is another log building, this one only a single story high, with large windows down both of it’s long sides, and large sliding doors on either end. The sound of horses moving around and eating pours out of the large stable, along with the smell of straw and manure. Behind the stable are a few paddocks, where some of the horses are grazing.

Across the driveway from the house is yet another log building. The bunkhouse has a small porch, and is a couple stories tall. Blue checkered curtains line the windows, which are open to let the fresh summer air in. There are hitching posts on either side of the front porch steps, making it a smaller version of the main ranch house across the driveway.  

The van stops in front of the larger house just as the door to the log home opens, and out walks an older man, around 50 or 60, with greying hair and a wrinkled face. His skin is permanently brown from the amount of time he’s spent out in the sun. Though he has a slight limp, he walks with confidence, as if he has the world at his fingertips. His blue grey eyes are squinty, with crows feet coming off the corners, and his tall, lean frame leans slightly to the left, due to his bad back.

He smiles as he walks down the front steps of the porch, rolling up the sleeves of his red plaid shirt as he steps closer to the five boys emerging from the crowded van.

He and Paul exchange a handshake, then the man turns to the five boys who are now standing in a row.

“Afternoon boys. Welcome to th' Rocking R,” he says with a smile, which the boys return. His voice is deep, with a drawl, sounding like the cowboys in the movies the five boys had recently watched to “prepare themselves,” as Louis called it, for their new job. 

“Lads, this is Eugene Johnson. He owns the ranch, and he’ll be your boss for the summer,” says Paul. 

The boys nod, and step forward to shake Eugene’s hand and introduce themselves. First Liam, then Niall, Harry, Louis, and finally, Zayn. The lads had already signed contracts saying that they would be employed at the ranch until the beginning of August, working out what they would be paid, and taking care of liability isssues. 

“Well, Laura's s’posed to show ya ‘round, but I ain't quite sure where she’s got off to…” Eugene says.

No sooner have the words left his mouth than the sound of galloping hooves and barking fills the air. 

The boys look toward the sound to see the girl from the field riding toward them at full speed. Their eyes widen as she gets closer and closer, still not slowing down. Just as the lads are about to jump back into the van, she hauls back on the reins, and the horse skids to a halt, it’s nose stopping mere inches from Harry’s face. Dust flies everywhere, mostly all over the boys. The big dog that follows her quietly begins to sniff the newcomers, making sure they mean no harm. 

“Sorry Daddy, I woulda been here earlier, but that stubborn heifer wouldn’t go ‘cross th' river,” she says, jumping down from the large roan horse. 

Her voice is a bit rough, like she’s been yelling all day, but to the boys standing there staring at her, it sounds angelic. Smooth, like dark chocolate and honey mixed together, flowing from her lips like water over stones in a river. She, like her father, has a bit of a drawl, the sound of her voice making the boys feel at home.

 Her jeans are covered in mud on the bottom, as well as her worn cowboy boots, most likely the result of having to carry one of the younger calves across the muddy river because it was too small to cross by itself.

She turns, and seems to take notice of the boys for the first time. She studies each of them individually, then turns back to her father. 

“This them?” she asks, trying to stifle a snort.

“Sure is,” Eugene replies, “Now go show ‘em where they’ll  be bunkin’, what horses‘re theirs, an’ everything they’ll need ta know.”

She nods. “Yessir.” 

And with that, Eugene walks away, toward the large red barn behind the stable.

Laura turns to the boys. 

“I’m gonna go unsaddle Rebel, you can unload yer stuff. I’ll be right back.” And she turns away, leading the big horse off to the stables by the reins.


	3. Chapter 3

_**Laura** _

As I walk to the stables, I can feel five sets of eyes on me, watching my every move. I whistle for Yankee, my dog, and he leaves his job of guarding the new guys to follow at my heels. 

Speaking of the new guys, they aren’t what I expected, nor what I was hoping for. Just perfect, they are. A bunch of spoiled city brats, probably from rich families. I’d be willing to bet they’ve never worked a day in their lives. Sure doesn’t look like it. They probably spend more time on their hair every morning than I do brushing Rebel on a show day. I can’t wait to break them in.

I have to admit though, they aren’t too bad looking. A lot better than the last bunch Daddy hired. They just seem so… out of place here. Like they belong in New York or some city. Not here, on a ranch. I hope they know that they’ll have to pull up their pants and put on some boots before they can really do any work around here. They’re probably gonna need some new, more durable clothes. Guess there’s a trip to town coming soon. Oh well. We need feed anyway. 

I hang my saddle in it’s place on the rack in the tack room, and put the bridle on the hook outside of Rebel’s stall. 

With Yankee right behind me, I walk out to the group of boys sadly waving goodbye to the van rolling  away down the drive. 

  “So,” I say, breaking the silence and getting them to turn and look at me, “ ’M Laura.” 

They look at each other for a few seconds before one of them steps forward. A tall brunette, with short brown hair and brown eyes, dressed in a blue shirt and black jeans, with white shoes on his feet.

“Liam,” he says, firmly shaking my hand. He must be the responsible one of the group, being the one who stepped up first. He seems well built enough for this job. Maybe.

Next comes an even taller brunette, this one with curly hair and green eyes. He's dressed in jeans that seem tight enough to cut off circulation, a white v-neck, and a black jacket. 

“Harry,” he tells me, grinning. He grasps my hand in his huge paw, and I’m amazed at how big his hands are. Gonna be hard to find gloves for this one. He seems to be the tallest out of the bunch. He steps back from me with a wink. Great, a flirty one. Just what I need. 

After Harry comes the blonde one, wearing a red shirt and blue jeans.

“Niall,” he says, his deep Irish accent catching me a little off guard. I thought they would all be British. He stares at me with his piercing blue eyes, and I stare right back, not willing to seem intimidated. Upon getting a closer look, I notice that his hair isn’t naturally blonde, but brown, and it’s been dyed. Figures. Nobody’s happy with what they got these days.

“Niall, stop staring! I wanna turn!” says another, taller than Niall, brunette. He lightly pushes Niall out of the way.

“I’m Louis!” he says enthusiastically, looking at me with his bright silver-blue eyes. “It’s nice to meet you!” His smile is bright, like he’s really happy. He's wearing a white button up with a jacket over top, and black jeans.

“’S nice ta meet you too Louis,” I say politely, and shake his hand, which is insanely soft. All this work he’ll be doing will probably be tough on his soft city kid hands.

The last one, a tall, tan boy with dark hair, dressed in a maroon shirt, jeans and a leather jacket, slowly steps forward and shakes my hand. 

“Erm… I’m Zayn,” he says, looking at the ground. I can tell he’s going to be the quiet one. Good. I like quiet people. Fewer questions to answer.

“Well, now that we all know each other, grab yer stuff, take it inta th' bunkhouse, ‘an I’ll show ya where yer gonna be stayin’.” 

They pick up their suitcases, as many as they can carry, and it’s painfully obvious that they brought too much stuff. I decide to help them out, and grab the two cases that are still on the ground. Then I lead them through the door of the bunkhouse.

“Wow,” Niall says as they take in the high ceiling of the large main room, the stone fireplace, rustic decorations, and several racks of antlers and head mounts hanging on the walls. There’s a kitchen area with a bar right in front of us, and above that is a loft area with six doors that lead to the six bedrooms.  Below the loft are a few other doors, leading to my office and the laundry room. To the left is the "living room" with the TV that I barely watch, a couple leather couches facing it.

“Yer rooms’re up there,” I say, nodding toward the loft. “You can have any of ‘em ‘cept th' one on th' far right.” 

“Why not that one?” asks Louis.

“Cuz that’s my room,” I say.

They all turn from admiring the decorations to look at me. 

“You stay in here?” asks an excited Liam. 

I nod. “Yessir, I do.”

They all look at each other excitedly. What is with these guys?

“Well, get up there ‘n pick out yer rooms, I ain’t got all day.”

They all race up the stairs, as if they’re trying to get to whatever room they want first. I roll my eyes and carry the two suitcases I had grabbed to the top of the stairs. 

When I reach the loft floor, the boys have all dropped their suitcases and are having a huge game of rock paper scissors. I s’pose that’s pretty smart. Don’t want any of them to get hurt on their first day here by getting in a fight, and I don’t want to have to break one up.

“Ha!” Louis shouts at Harry. “I beat you! I win!” He does a little victory dance before grabbing his suitcases and running through the door of the room next to mine, kicking the door shut before anyone can object. 

“Well, someone’s excited,” I say, laughing a little. The other boys laugh, then pick up their luggage and go into the rooms they’ve claimed as theirs for the next three months. 

“I’ll take that,” says Liam, grabbing one of the suitcases I had brought inside. “Thank you for bringing it in.” He shoots me a bright smile, and I nod. “That one is Zayn’s, I think he went in that room,” he adds, nodding his head toward a door. I set the suitcase inside the open door, barely hearing the mumbled ‘thank you’ from Zayn.

Once they’ve all finished putting their stuff into their rooms, they come back out onto the loft floor.

“So this ‘s where you’ll be stayin’ while yer here. Bathroom’s downstairs, offa th' kitchen.”

“Is there a shower in the bathroom?” asks Niall. 

“Course there’s a shower. Whatd’ya think, we jus’ go down ta th' crik an’ jump in?” 

“Anyway, I’ll show ya th' rest o’ th' place,” I say, leading them back down the stairs and back out the door, straight to the stables. 

Yankee, who had been waiting on the porch for us, gets up and follows right behind me, nearly tripping Liam in the process. 

We reach the stables, and I roll open the huge door, letting the sweet smell of hay and horse fill my lungs. I take a deep breath, letting all the smells waft through my nose. 

“Is - is that what I think it is?” says a slow deep voice from behind me. I turn to see Harry staring at something. 

“Is what what ya think it is?” I ask, confused. He just points at something. I step almost right in front of him, and follow the direction he’s pointing. “Really?” I ask, “That’s my cat.”

He looks at me excitedly. “It’s - it’s yours? CanIpetitplease?” He’s acting like a little kid asking to go on a ride at the fair.

“Yeah, I s’pose,” I say, a little weirded out. The other boys look normal, as if this happens every day. 

“Yay!” he says, grinning from ear to ear as he runs over to my brown striped cat, sitting down on the dirt floor of the barn and putting the cat in his lap. I’m pretty sure I look really freaked out, cause Liam puts his hand on my shoulder and says, “Don’t worry, he just really likes cats.”

“I can see that,” I say, watching the curly haired boy play with my cat. 

“What’s it’s name?” Harry asks, not looking up.

“Tigger,” I reply.  

 “Like, with Pooh Bear? That Tigger?” Louis asks. 

I nod. “Yeah, Tigger seemed like it fit. He’s a stripedy cat.”

By the time I finish showing them around, and we walk back to the bunkhouse, it’s around four in the afternoon. 

“So, ya'll can go get settled in, supper’l be around five thirty or six-ish. Unpack yer stuff an’ whatever,” I tell them.

“When do we start the … erm… the working part?” Liam asks. 

“Prolly Wednesday. That’s when th' hay’ll be dry ‘nuff to bale.” 


	4. Chapter 4

_**Louis** _

Laura says we'll start working on Wednesday. That's good. It'll give us enough time to get used to how things work around here. After she sees us nod in answer to her, she turns and walks away. Huh? Are we that bad?

"Where are you going?" Harry asks.

"Goin' ta town. Need feed fer th' horses," she calls over her shoulder. She whistles, and her dog lopes over, falling into step with her. She opens the door of a huge - and I mean huge - dark red pickup truck, and climbs in. Then she turns to the dog, tells it something I can't make out, and the animal comes running back to where we are.

Laura shuts the door and starts the engine. The truck roars to life, the engine growling and spewing black smoke out of the two stacks on the back of the cab. I can hear the radio blaring an old country song as she pulls away and rolls down the driveway, smashing the gas and throwing gravel behind her.

"So what do we do now?" Zayn asks.

"Go inside, I guess," Liam answers.

We walk into the bunkhouse and sit down on the couches by the fireplace. The big dog follows us, laying down at the end of the two couches, in between them. He looks at each of us, then to the door, as if he wants Laura to come back so he doesn't have to deal with us alone. We all look at him, wondering if he's friendly or not.

Being the closest, and wanting to know if he's a nice dog or not, I put my hand out toward him.

"Hey buddy," I say softly. His ears shoot up, and he sits up. looking at me, then at my hand. He tilts his head to the left, then slowly inches his nose toward my hand.

"Louis..." Liam warns, "That might not be a good idea."

"Shhh... Don't scare him," I say quietly, not taking my eyes off the big dog in front of me.

I feel the air rush over my fingers as he sniffs them, smelling me, making sure I'm not an enemy. After a few seconds, he licks my hand, and I smile.

"There's a good boy..." I say, moving my hand to pet his head, gently running my fingers through his shaggy fur. "See? He's friendly." I smile at the other lads.

Niall gets up and walks over, holding his hand out, getting a similar result as me.

Soon we're all petting the big dog, and he couldn't be happier. HIs fluffy tail is wagging back and forth across the floor and his tongue is lolling out.

"I wonder what his name is," Niall thinks aloud.

I feel around until my fingers find a worn leather collar with metal tags hanging off of it.

"Yankee," I read off of a tarnished copper tag.

"I wonder what this girl is like," Zayn says, "She's pretty quiet."

"So are you!" Harry says jokingly, lightly shoving him. "But seriously, how are we supposed to work with this girl if we don't know what she's like?"

"Well, we could find out more about her...nah..." Niall starts.

"What were you gonna say?" Harry asks. I wanna know too, my curiosity's getting the better of me.

"Well, I was gonna say we could probably find out more about her if we looked in her room, but that's probably-"

"That's a great idea!" Harry says, jumping to his feet. "Let's go!"

"Haz, I don't know if that's a good idea..." Liam starts, but Harry's already headed up the stairs.

Suddenly Yankee isn't happily sitting on the floor anymore, but he's after Harry, and catching up quickly.

Just before the tall lad gets to the door, he's tackled by Laura's big dog. Yankee practically sits on top of him, baring his teeth and growling in Harry's face.

"I guess that's a no on going in her room," Harry mutters, getting up and walking back down the stairs.

"I guess it is," Liam chuckles.

"So what do we do now?" I ask.

"I dunno, does the TV work?" Zayn answers my question with a question.

"If I could find the remote I would have turned it on already," Harry grumbles.

"Well, maybe we should unpack, like Laura told us to..." I suggest. I know that I probably won't ever unpack all my stuff, I want to take a nap. Travelling makes me tired.

"I s'pose we should," Liam agrees, "We might as well."

About two hours later, I am awakened from my lovely nap by Yankee barking at the door and a loud truck pulling into the driveway. I think Laura's back!

I make sure my hair looks alright, then walk out of my room, and join the other lads on the loft floor.

"So do you think she wants help?" Liam wonders, "I saw her carrying some pretty big bags into the barn from that truck."

"That would be the nice thing to do," Niall says. The rest of us nod, and we go down the stairs, put on our shoes, and walk out to help Laura.

"What're ya doin'?" she asks once she sees us.

"Erm... we were wondering if you wanted any help?" Harry asks timidly.

"Oh..." she says, seeming a bit surprised. "I guess, if ya wanna. Jus' grab a bag 'an take it inta th' tack room." She points to several bags in the bed of the truck, then motions toward the open door of a room just inside the barn door.

We nod, and she grabs a bag, hoisting it over her shoulder with little effort. Alright, this shouldn't be too hard. I step over as she walks away, and grab one of the bags, pulling it toward me across the tailgate of the truck. However, when I try to pick it up, I find that it's really heavy.

"Bloody Hell," I curse, "These are heavier than they look."

"Or maybe you're just losing your Superman strength," Harry jokes.

"Oh, shut up." I stick my tongue out at him and lift the bag onto my shoulder. "Holy shhhh, this is heavy."

"Lemme try," Liam says, grabbing a bag for himself as I start to walk away. "Lads, he's not joking, these are really heavy." I smirk to myself as I walk through the open door and find Laura pouring the contents of the bag she brought inside into a large metal barrel.

"Where would you like me to put this?" I ask her.

"Over there," she says, nodding her head toward a stack of bags near the barrels.

I set the bag down, and hear a quiet 'thank you' from Laura as I walk back out the door to grab another.

One by one, the bags are carried in. Soon they are all in the tack room and so are us lads. But instead of talking to us like we want her to, Laura is simply cutting the bags open and dumping the feed into the barrels. Now that I think about it, they look like oil barrels.

"Why do you put the feed into barrels?" Liam asks.

"Ta keep th' coons from gettin' in it," is Laura's simple reply.

Another long silence. Another bag opened. More pouring feed.

"Ya know, you don't have ta jus' sit out here with me if ya don't wanna," Laura mutters. We look at each other, and stay where we are, seated on some... hay bales, I think they're called?

"Is that your truck out there?" I ask.

Even though her back is facing us, I can see Laura nod her head. "Yessir, it is."

Once the last bag of feed is emptied, Laura tells us to go and wash up for supper, that it would be in a few minutes.

I wash my hands, though I didn't really do anything to get them dirty, and then the lads and I walk down to the living room, looking for Laura.

"Where do you think she is?" Zayn asks.

"Erm... I dunno..." Harry answers, looking around. She's not in the kitchen, not even in this house from the looks of it.

Suddenly a loud ringing comes from outside, and we all look at each other, trying to figure out where it's coming from. Yankee runs to the door, scratching at it and barking.

I go over and open the door, letting him out, and he runs toward the big house across the driveway. We follow him, and see Laura on the front porch of the big house, ringing - OH MY GOSH, it's a huge triangle!! Ok, stay calm.... you can do this...

Laura goes inside once she sees us, and I'm not sure if we're supposed to follow her or what.

Luckily, Mr. Johnson is walking toward the big house too.

"Howdy boys, ya hungry?" he asks us.

"Yes sir, we are," Liam answers.

"Well, come on inside, supper's ready," he says, leading us up the stairs and through the big wooden doors. We follow him in, and past a couple rooms until we get to what I assume is the dining room. It's separated from the kitchen by a large counter, lined with tall wooden stools. The entire place just feels rustic, like in all those cowboys movies we've watched. I knew they'd come in handy.

We sit down at the table along with Mr. Johnson, and not three seconds later Laura comes around the counter with what I think is supper, one hand with a bowl of mashed potatoes and the other with a plate of - Oh my goodness, she's made us steak. Do we eat like this all the time here? Cause I could totally get used to this.

Laura sets the plate and bowl down on the table, then goes back to the kitchen, coming back this time with mugs and a jug of milk. She sets the mugs down on the table, one in front of each of us, and then proceeds to pour the milk into everyone's mugs. As she finishes mine, I say a quiet 'thank you,' and she nods. Once she's done, she sits down in the chair to the right of her father.

"Ya'll can fix yer own plates, eat as much as ya want," Mr. Johnson says. "If ya go to bed hungry, it's yer own fault."

Well, he didn't have to tell us twice. The lads and I dig right in, filling our plates.

"So how do you like it out here?" Mr. Johnson asks after a few minutes.

"It's very nice, sir," Liam says.

"Very quiet. It's different from touring," Harry adds.

Mr. Johnson nods, and we go back to eating.

"Jeremy came by earlier today, wondered where you were," he says, talking to Laura.

"What'd he want?" Laura asks.

"Wanted to know if you had time to come over. Says ya'll need to practice for Friday."

"He knows we're ready fer Friday, he don't need to worry."

Who is this Jeremy? I bet he's her boyfriend. Darn it! Of course she would have a boyfriend, look at her, she's fit. Well, this puts a downer on the summer...

After we finish eating, which is around 7, we go back to the bunkhouse, while Laura stays in the big house for awhile.

"So... What do you lads wanna do?" I ask.

"Do you think that Jeremy fellow is Laura's boyfriend?" Harry asks. Of course he would be the most worried about whether she has a boyfriend or not.

"I dunno, it seems like he might be. Maybe he's just a friend though," Liam says.

"Well, we won't know for sure unless we ask..." Zayn says quietly.

We all look at each other, and I put my finger over my nose. Harry and Zayn quickly do the same, followed by Liam.

"Ha! Nose goes!" Harry jeers, pointing at Niall.

"Aww, come on lads! You know I can't..." Niall whines.

"Yes you can! Just ask!" Harry says.

"If you want to know so bad, you ask!" Niall says, leaning back into the couch he's sitting on.

"Fine, I'll ask," Harry says, giving in.

As soon as he finishes talking, Laura walks in the door. She kicks off her boots and walks right up the stairs and into her room, leaving the door open.

'Go' I mouth at Harry, nodding my head up toward her door.

Just as he gets up, the door shuts.

"Well," Harry huffs, plopping back down, "I guess that's a sign we should leave her alone."


	5. Chapter 5

Laura's Point of View

I wake up to the sound of barking. Rrrrg, Yankee knows I don’t like to get up early. 

I roll out of bed, wondering what he could want this early in the morning. I look at the clock on my nightstand. 7:12am. Well, maybe it’s not too early after all.

I pull on a pair of shorts and change into a sports bra and a light sweatshirt and put my hair up into a braid. After grabbing my tennis shoes that aren’t for volleyball, I open my door and walk down the stairs. Yankee’s at the door, waiting for me to open it and let him out. He hasn’t quite gotten the concept of the screen door that he can open on his own. 

I push the door open and step onto the front porch, taking a seat on the steps to put my shoes on. It’s so peaceful out here. The best place in the entire world. I can hear the cattle mooing in the fields, and the sounds of the horses waking up in the stable. 

Well, might as well start this day off right. I stand up, taking a deep breath of the fresh country air, and begin my jog out to the end of the three quarter mile driveway to get the mail. 

Niall’s Point of View

When I wake up from my dreaming, the first thing I notice is the smell of food. Bacon, specifically. Maybe Laura’s making breakfast?

I get out of bed and get dressed, pulling on a jumper and a pair of comfortable sweats. Then I walk out of my room and look at the kitchen of the bunkhouse. I see Laura in there, standing over the stove, with at least three different pans over the stovetop. Yes! Food! 

She puts eggs, bacon, and hashbrowns onto plates, then sets them on the bar, where there is a stack of plates and silverware waiting to be filled.

She turns and begins to walk toward me, and then she notices that I’m standing there. 

“Mornin’, Niall,” she says, giving me a small smile, which I return. 

“Morning,” I reply. 

“Could ya go get th’ others an' tell ‘em breakfast's ready?”  I nod, and she turns back to the kitchen, and keeps getting things out. I go over to Liam’s room, and wake him up, saying breakfast is ready. Then I go to Harry’s room, then Louis’, then Zayn’s. 

Once they are all awake, I go back down to the kitchen with Laura.

“Do you want any help?” I ask. 

“Umm… yeah. Can ya take this,” she hands me a plate of pancakes, “to th' table?”

“Sure.” I walk over and set the plate down on the wooden table, and then the other lads sit down at the table, so I sit with them, and Laura brings out cups and a carton of orange juice. However, instead of pouring it for us like she did at supper last night, she sets it on the table and takes a seat. 

“There’s milk in th’ fridge an’ water in the sink if ya don’t want orange juice.” 

After that, we fill our plates and we start eating.

*************************************************************************

Later that afternoon, we found the remote, and were watching Spongebob, because Harry really wanted to. Bless him, he’s a child at heart. 

Laura’s somewhere outside, doing something, I guess.

“So, I think she’s pretty fit,” Harry says, talking to Liam.

“So? That’s pretty obvious.”

“What? That she’s fit, or that I think she is?” Harry starts kinda freaking out, worried. 

“That she’s fit. Geez Haz, calm down. It’s alright,” Liam says, laughing. 

“I wonder what kind of stuff we’ll be doing. Like, will we get to do the lasso thingy like in the movies?” Zayn asks. 

“Maybe… I saw some ropes hanging in the barn. We might get to learn how to use them,” Liam says. 

“I hope it isn’t too tough,” Harry mutters. 

“Well, what did she says we would be doing tomorrow? Baling hay, was it?” I ask. “That doesn’t sound too hard.”

“What is it though?” Louis asks. “I’ve never heard of it.”

“Well, look it up,” Liam says.

I pull out my phone, and go onto my Google app. I type in ‘baling hay,’ and search it. 

It comes up with a lot of definitions, and a few videos. I click on [one of them](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79NfLxy87Gw) and there’s a tractor in a field, with a strange-looking machine behind it, and a wagon behind that. There’s a guy on the tractor, and two on the wagon. It looks like the guys on the wagon are taking what I assume are the hay bales out of the end of the machine, and stacking them on the wagon.

“It doesn’t look too hard, see?” I say, holding my phone out so the other lads can see it. 

“No, it doesn’t. I bet we can do it,” Louis says.  

“So do you think we’ll get to ride horses anytime soon?” Harry wonders aloud.

“Probably, Laura said we each get our own horse for the summer. I like mine,” Liam says, smiling.

“I like mine too, she’s pretty,” Harry says. 

“Yeah, well your horses can’t be as cool as mine,” I say. 

“Why not?” Zayn asks, grinning.

“Cause my horse’s name is Half Pint! That’s the best name ever.” 

“Probably cause he’s so short,” Louis jokes, and I laugh along with him and the lads.

“Well they all look small compared to Laura’s horse. That thing’s huge!” Harry says.

 

Later that evening, after supper, Laura walks in, and goes to the kitchen, opening the fridge and getting out a yogurt. Her phone rings, playing what I assume is a country song, and she answers.

“Hey Jerbear.”

Almost immediately the volume on the TV goes down, not too far though, because we don’t want to look too suspicious. 

“No, we don’t need ta practice, I told ya, we’re good fer Friday.”

“We can talk tamarra, yer still comin' ta help bale hay, right?”

“Kay, see ya tamarra then… Bye.”

She walks up to her room, and the door shuts. 

“That didn’t sound like a boyfriend-girlfriend conversation,” Louis says. 

“Yeah, there was no ‘I love you,’ or anything like that…” Zayn adds. 

“So… maybe we’ve got a shot?” Harry says hopefully.

“Don’t get too excited, she might not be interested. We don’t even know for sure if she’s single or not,” Liam says. “We should probably get to bed, it’s after eight.”

_**Laura** _

After a long day of getting the hayloft ready for the huge load of hay that we’ll be bringing in, I can finally fall asleep. But sleep isn’t coming very fast, and I have no clue why. Usually I can fall right to sleep once my head hits the pillow. Oh well, Netflix it is. 

I find a Disney movie, The Little Mermaid, to be exact, and settle down on my bed with Yankee cuddled into my side and my laptop on my lap.

I can’t really concentrate on the movie though. My mind is stuck on the new guys. I wonder what they’re like. I don’t really know, cause I’ve been staying away from them all day. They seem like they have pretty nice manners, and they look nice. But they’re leaving once they get enough money to go back to wherever they’re from. So I shouldn’t get too attached to them, cause they probably won’t remember who I am if they ever see me again after this summer.

Wow, that’s a downer thought. I wish I could be more optimistic about this, but the fact is that they’re gonna leave, and I can’t do anything about it.

All this thinking is making me really tired, and the movie’s not even half over. 

I want to be friends with them, but I don’t want to be forgotten about when they leave. I’m not sure where this crazy, irrational fear is coming from. Jeremy says I’m unforgettable, though I’m not sure if he means it in a good or bad way.  Daddy says that nobody can forget me, and I’m sure he means it in a good way. Oh well, I don’t have anything to worry about. It’s not like they like me or anything. At least they aren’t creepy like the ones Daddy hired last year. 

I could tell he didn’t have many options when he hired them. A bunch of older guys with beards and tons of tattoos. No manners at all, and they had a disgusting sense of humor. They were only in it for the money. 

That’s about the time Daddy broke his hip and I had to come back from college to help out again. Daddy didn’t trust those men out on the range with his livestock, and for good reason. However, he couldn’t get out there to watch them anymore with his injury. And the pickup can only go so far in the field. 

College was alright, I s’pose, but I like home better. This ranch is my dream, not being stuck in a classroom in the middle of a city. I could barely stand those dorms, with only one window, and that one window had a terrible view. A parking lot. Not my ideal thing to see when I wake up. 

And none of the parking spaces were big enough for my truck, so I had to resort to parking a couple blocks away from my classes, and walking the rest of the way. Ugh. At least my legs got a daily workout. The only time I can stand going into town now is to buy feed, groceries, or when I go down to the high school to play volleyball.


	6. Chapter 6

_**Laura** _

I wake up the next morning at 7:30. I get out of bed and walk to the bathroom attached to my room. It's a great thing to have when there's guys in the house all the time.

I wash my face, french braid my hair, and brush my teeth. Then I put on my shorts and sweatshirt and grab my shoes to go outside for my morning run to the mailbox.

This morning run thing started with me having to go get the mail, and turned into a way for me to stay in shape, I s'pose. It helps me get my day started off right.

When I get back, I put the mail on the counter in the main house, and then head over to the bunkhouse to get changed and start on breakfast.

Before I know it, the guys are wandering down the stairs, and sleepily stumbling to the kitchen table. It makes me smile a little, how they look like they're still asleep, but they come downstairs when they smell food. It's almost cute.

I set the plates of food on the table, and watch them slowly wake up as they eat. They become more talkative, more alive, as they eat and talk to each other. They seem like good friends, like they know each other really well.

"So Laura, we're doing what today?" the tall one, Harry, asks.

"Balin' hay. Make sure ya wear long pants," I answer. They nod, but still seem confused. "Keeps the hay from gettin' in yer clothes as much," I elaborate. This seems to make sense to them, and they go back to their conversation.

After the dishes from breakfast are washed and put away, we go outside and wait for Jeremy. The guys gave me weird looks when I said he would be helping us. Wonder why. He's a nice guy, nothing wrong with him. Except his girlfriend, but I'll get into that later.

Eventually, I see his truck roll down the driveway, a cloud of dust billowing out behind it. We need rain, bad. It's been a dry year so far, not good for the crops.

"Hey Lulu!" he shouts once he gets out of his truck, parked by mine.

"Hey yerself!" I yell back, going down the steps to talk to him. Once I reach him, he hugs me, and we stand there for a minute by his truck.

"They the new guys yer dad hired?" He asks, nodding toward the guys on the porch.

I nod. "Ayup."

"They don't seem... quite cut out fer this kinda work..." he mutters.

"I know. But it's been gettin' harder 'an harder ta find people who wanna work on a ranch."

"Well, we better get ta work then. Burnin' daylight, ya know," he says with a grin. I lightly punch his arm, and we walk back to the porch.

_**Harry** _

"Guys, this 's Jeremy. He lives down th' road, an' he helps out once 'n awhile," Laura says.

She introduces us, and I study the guy for a bit. He's tall, at least six foot two, and he's got blonde hair, cut short. He's got a few tattoos, though nowhere near as many as me or Zayn. He's built, kind of like Liam, but he's lanky, not like, super muscly. Kind of like me. He doesn't seem like much of a threat. He's good looking, I guess. Blue eyes, a nice smile.

He seems friendly enough.

"Haz, come on," Louis' voice snaps me out of my thoughts. I follow him and the rest of the lads, who are following Laura and Jeremy, toward the big red barn behind the stable.

The door creaks loudly as Laura opens it, stepping inside soon after, disappearing behind the worn red wood, and the rest of us follow.

Once we're inside the barn, I notice how dark it is in here. I can't really see anything at first, but then my eyes adjust, and I can make out the shapes of huge tractors and other big machinery parked in the large barn.

"So we're gonna be usin' this here baler," Jeremy says, and I have to look for a second before I find him standing next to a weird-looking piece of equipment that must be the baler.

"How does it work?" Liam asks, staring at the piece of machinery curiously.

"The tines over here," he points to one end of the baler that sticks out from the rest of it, "pick up the hay an' bring it inta here," he points at a huge rectangular part of the baler, "and the hay gets squashed inta bales, an' this thing here," a big lever looking thing, "ties the twine inta knots, makin' it a bale." Jeremy smiles, like he's pleased with himself for explaining the entire process to us. I actually understand it too, that's the important part.

Suddenly the entire barn is filled with light as the big sliding door is pushed open by Laura.

"We're usin' th' Deere, right?" Laura asks. Deer? We use deer to do this stuff? What the-

"Yeah, cause it's the only tractor ya got with the right hitch," Jeremy replies. Oooohh.... they're talking about what kind of tractor is gonna pull the thing behind it. I get it.

"So start it up, I'll get th' pin," Laura says.

"What do we do?" Liam asks.

"Climb up on th' wagon n' get comfy. 'S gonna be awhile afore we get out ta th' field."

We hop onto the big wagon, and sit down so we can see what they're doing.

Jeremy starts up the tractor, and let me tell you, that thing is  _loud_. Then he pulls forward so that it's in front of the baler, and backs up watching Laura the whole time to see how close he is. She waves her hand, telling him to keep going, until the hitch is in the right spot, then she makes a fist, and Jeremy stops. Then Laura picks up the hitch and lines it up with the hitch on the tractor, dropping a metal pin through once it's in place.

After that, Jeremy pulls forward, then backs up to hook the baler to the hay wagon that we're sitting on. Laura swings one leg over the huge hitch, and picks it up, holding it up so it's level with the hitch on the back of the baler. The thing is, though, she's, like, bent over. Like, she's sticking her arse out, almost squatting on top of that huge piece of metal between her legs. Good Lord, that arse. I didn't notice it earlier, but those jeans fit her just right.

I nudge Louis with my elbow, and nod inconspicuously toward Laura. He not-so-subtly looks over, and his eyes get huge. Pretty soon all of us lads are staring and, unfortunately, the tractor's back far enough, so Laura puts another metal pin in, and stands up, hopping onto the wagon with us.

As the wagon starts to move, we are jolted backwards, and Jeremy yells back an apology. Something about not holding the clutch down long enough. Laura mutters something, but laughs anyway. Then she crawls back to us, I assume it's to tell us something.

"So once we get out there, one person can ride on th' tractor with Jeremy while th' rest o' us stack bales. Ya can decide 'mong yerselves who goes first, but whenever someone gets tired, they can go hop on th' tractor fer awhile," she says.

"What about you?" Liam asks. Of course, beat me to the gentlemanly question.

"I'll stack bales with th' rest o' ya," she answers. Then she gives him a look. "You don't think I can do this, do ya?"

"No, it's not that, I was just wondering..." Liam stutters. Laura grins.

"I'm jus' messin' with ya, 's ok." She lightly punches him in the arm, laughing. I think this is the first time I've heard her laugh. It's worth the wait, that's for sure. A lovely sound, like music.

It doesn't last long, however, and soon she's standing on the moving wagon, and we are almost to what I think is the hayfield.

"Alright, who's going with Jeremy first?" Liam asks. I quickly put my finger to my nose. Louis is the first to notice, and quickly copies me. Then Niall and Zayn, leaving Liam as the odd one out.

"Fine, I'll go," he sighs, scooting so that he was on the edge of the wagon, his feet dangling off the edge.

Jeremy stops, and Liam hops off, walks over up to the tractor, and climbs on. I see Jeremy tell him something, and then we start moving again.

**_Liam_ **

I can't believe Harry did that. There's clearly a rule that says you have to say 'nose goes' before you put your finger on your nose. Seriously.

"So, Liam, right?" Jeremy asks.

I nod.

"How do ya like it out here so far?"

I shrug. "S' alright so far, I guess, we haven't really done or seen a whole lot yet."

He nods. "Laura bein' nice to ya?" he questions.

"Yeah, she's made us breakfast every morning, and lunch and supper. She's a great cook. She's just really quiet."

"Quiet? Laura?" He laughs. "She ain't quiet at all."

"Really?" Wow, I thought maybe she was just a quiet person. It's probably because she doesn't know us very well yet. She's making sure we're alright before she starts being herself.

"Yessir, she was quiet when I first met her. Wouldn't say much at first, but she's gotten more comfortable 'round me, 'an now she never shuts up when we talk."

I nod, a smile on my face. So it's not our fault, she's just not comfortable with us yet. She'll get there.

"So what do ya'll normally do?" he asks. I smile, and tell him about how we went on the X-Factor, and got put into a group, and how we sing all over the world.

"Sounds like a perdy nice setup," he says once I've finished.

"It is. I get to be with my four best friends, and do what I love."

"I wanna do somethin' like that someday," he says, smiling. "I've always loved ta sing. We got a band, Laura, my brother an' me."

"Really? What kind of stuff do you do?"

"Well, me an' Laura sing, we all play guitar. We mostly do ol' country songs, 'cept Laura. She'll sing 'most anything."

"Really?" This is awesome. I'm getting to know Laura without really talking to her... I suppose this'll work.

About an hour later, I'm back on the wagon, stacking hay along with Laura and the lads. Zayn's taking his turn on the tractor with Jeremy. These bales are heavy, but it seems that they get lighter as we've been going along, if that makes sense. That or I'm getting used to their weight. But Laura doesn't seem to be having any trouble whatsoever with them. She probably does this all the time.

It's also a bit challenging getting used to the movement of the wagon under my feet and walking without falling. It feels like I'm on a boat or something.

Harry's trying to hold up a conversation with Laura about what her opinion is on shoes, but she's not really giving him much to work with, just one word answers, and a sentence here and there.

"Haz, maybe she doesn't wanna talk," I hear Louis mutter to him when they pass each other walking back and forth on the wagon.

"Naw, yer jus' not talkin' 'bout anything I wanna talk 'bout," she says. Wow, she heard that? She must have really good hearing. I could barely hear him.

"Well what do you wanna talk about?" Harry asks, still trying to make conversation.

"Well, nothin' 'bout clothes 'r shoes," she answers, crossing her arms over her chest and popping her hip out, a quiet grin on her face. I like this girl already.

Around noon, we walk back to the bunkhouse for lunch, and Laura makes us sandwiches. Well, she got the stuff to make sandwiches out of the fridge for us and told us to make our own. Except she used nicer words. After we ate, Jeremy pulled a bag out of his truck and took it up to Laura's room, saying something about staying the night. Hmm...

Then it was back to work. Luckily, we didn't have to walk all the way back to the hayfield. Jeremy drove us back out in his truck. Which, I must say, is very comfy. It's a big, white Chevy, and according to Laura, it's older than her truck. Jeremy says he got it from a guy in Napoleon, which is about an hour away from here, and fixed it up with his dad.

Out of the two of them Jeremy is defintitely the friendlier one.

"Are you two dating?" Harry asks, unable to hold out any longer.

They look at each other, then burst out laughing. Like, uncontrollable laughing. Laura's face is turning red as she laughs, her eyes nearly closed as she tries, and fails, to hold back a snort.

"What's so funny?" Niall asks. The two friends can't reply, they are laughing so hard.

"You - you should stop - 'fore - 'afore we - crash..." Laura tells Jeremy between laughs. Jeremy puts the truck in park and they keep laughing. Like, they can't stop. At all. Laura's face is red from not being able to breathe normally, and Jeremy keeps slapping the dashboard with his hand.

"Kay... phew... wow," Laura says, trying to catch her breath. She's crying from how hard she's been laughing.

"Alright, I'm good," Jeremy says, running his hand down his face.

"So... is that a no?" Harry asks, a bit confused.

"Ya kiddin' me? She's like my lil' sister," Jeremy says. Phew. Glad we got that cleared up.

"And he's way too messy fer me," Laura says. "Can't keep 'is room clean fer more 'n a day, at th' most."

"Hey! It was clean fer three days that one time!" Jeremy protests.

"Really? Was that th' time that ya shoved everythin' in yer closet? An' ya couldn't get it out fer a week?"

"No..." Jeremy says sheepishly. They argue, a lot like siblings would. They seem so close. "I'm not the only messy one, remember that time you-"

"Oh no ya don't!" Laura says, covering Jeremy's mouth with her hand. "Don't even think 'bout it."

**_Laura_ **

Wow, they were worried about whether or not me and Jeremy were dating? Are girls all they think about? Really? Cause if that's the case, then we might not get along. I'm not saying that it's a bad thing, but if all they wanna do is get with me, they've got another thing coming. I'm not a one night stand kind of girl. There's gotta be a serious commitment before all that...  _stuffy stuff_  happens. Serious. Commitment.

Anyway, they do seem to be getting the hang of baling hay pretty well. They aren't too bad at it. I've been watching them from my spot on the tractor by Jeremy. (Yes, they insisted that I had been back there too long, and that I should take a break, even though I had just taken one for lunch.)

"So... what are they like?" Jeremy asks.

"I dunno. You've prolly talked to 'em more'n I have."

"Really? You ain't talked to 'em?" I shake my head. "Well, ta me, they seem perdy nice."

"That's good. I don't wanna have ta deal with a house fulla jerks."

"No seriously Laura, they're really nice. Not one bad word ta say 'bout no one."

"'Tryin' ta make a point?"

"I'm just sayin', it's been awhile since Jack..."

"Oh no. No, no, no, no, jus' no. This ain't happenin'. No," I say, knowing what he's suggesting. I am not going to date some guy from another country who's gonna forget me once he leaves. Not happening.

"I'm just sayin'. Not makin' a big deal outta it. You know I like seein' ya happy."

"I am happy Jerbear." I know he wants the best for me, but this is a bit extreme. As if I didn't have enough pressure from Daddy and Grandma to find a guy and settle down. I don't want to just yet. I can wait till I find Mr.  _Right_ , not just Mr. Right  _Now_.

"Alright, I won't say no more 'bout it. But ya gotta admit, they are nice."

"I s'pose they are perdy nice. They ain't been much trouble. 'Cept they eat a lot."

"So do you," he points out.

"Yer point? I'm still growin'!"

He gives me a 'oh really?' look. "You stopped gettin' taller 'bout two years ago. I have no clue how else you can grow, 'nless yer plannin' to get fat."

I roll my eyes. "Yer one weird kid."

He laughs. "Sooo.. What songs're we playin' on Friday?"

_**Louis** _

It's around two in the afternoon. We're taking a break, sitting in the grass under the trees that border one side of the hayfield. Jeremy said something about the baler getting too hot, so we had to park it in the shade so it could cool down. Then Laura made a joke about it catching on fire that was actually kind of funny.

It's really hot out here, to the point where the lads and I aren't wearing shirts. Neither is Jeremy, and I noticed that he has this crazy scar down the middle of his back. The way Laura looks at it makes me think she knows how he got it.

She's talking more than she has been, but I think it's just because Jeremy's here. She has someone she knows to keep her comfortable. When she's around just us lads, she's quieter than she is now.

She's sitting by Jeremy now, talking about songs or something like that. Us lads are sitting by each other, sorta by the two friends, but a with a few feet of space between us. We're talking amongst ourselves, but I think Laura and Jeremy are talking about us now, 'cause they keep looking over in our direction.

But it probably doesn't help that we're talking about them either. Well, mostly Laura.

"So Jeremy, you said that you guys have a band?" Liam asks. What? A band? Why wasn't I told about this?

Jeremy nods. "Yessir, we do."

"So do you have, like, specific places you play at?"

This time Laura speaks up. "We play at th' barn dances Friday nights. Down at Wilder's place."

Liam nods.

"So do we get to go to these barn dances? Since we work here?" Harry asks.

Laura shrugs. "If ya want. S' prolly not what yer used to."

"Is it like a club or something?" Zayn asks.

"Naw, s' jus' a bunch o' country kids hangin' out an' playin' songs," Jeremy says.

"Ya mean country boys an' girls gettin' down on th' farm?" Laura says. This makes them both laugh, but I don't get the joke.

"Good one Lulu. But seriously, they're perdy fun. An' there's lotsa nice gals there, if ya know what I mean." Jeremy says once he's calmed down a bit. Alright, girls are cool, this might be fun.

"But not all of 'em are th' sort ya wanna be friendly with. Some of 'em 're downright mean," Laura says, and I can't help but wonder the reason behind her warning. Has she had a bad experience with some of the girls around here?

Of course she has, she's a girl! Gosh Louis, how could you be so dumb? Not that she seems to be the one who goes looking for drama, but she looks like she's been through a lot. Those brown eyes hold a lot of secrets, and I'm slowly finding myself wanting to know what they are.

"What kind of songs do you play?" Harry asks.

"Well, we've been learnin' a couple new ones, but we mostly play old country songs, an' a few classic rock songs here an' there," Jeremy answers.

"Do you write any of your own songs?" I ask. They shake their heads.

"Neither of us 's patient 'nuff to write our own song. Tried it a couple times. Didn't work," Laura says.

"Yeah, we had different ideas 'bout how it should sound an' everythin', we never even got to lyrics," Jeremy adds.

"No, we did too, 'member? You didn't like mine an' yers were all mushy an' shit," Laura says. They bicker like siblings, I can't believe we thought they were dating.

"What's wrong with mushy? Everyone likes a 'lil love," Jeremy protests.

"Well, not everyone wants to hear 'bout it." Laura looks off into the distance, like she's thinking about something. What does she mean, 'not everyone wants to hear about it'? Does  _she_  not want to hear about it? This girl is such a mystery, and when she's quiet it doesn't help.

"Well, the baler's prolly cooled down 'nuff to get back to work," Jeremy says, breaking the awkward tension.

"Yeah, let's go." Laura gets up and walks back to the wagon, climbing on and standing there, waiting.

"Is she always like this?" Harry asks Jeremy.

"Nah, some days she's worse."

"Jeremy! Come on! We ain't got all day!" Laura yells from the wagon. I guess it's back to work.

 

"Louis, you alive?" a voice says. This has to be a dream.

I feel something poke me. "Louis? You ok?"

I roll onto my back, and groan when the hay pokes into me.

"Oh good, yer alive. I didn't wanna have ta dig a hole today," Laura says.

"Hey!" I say, sitting up. Once I see the half smile on her face, I get that she's joking. She laughs, a brief, musical sound which makes me smile.

"So, we gotta go. They're waitin'." She nods toward the truck, the lads already inside.

"Where's Jeremy?" I ask.

"He's drivin' th' tractor back. I'm drivin' th' truck," she replies. "Come on, 'm hungry."

She jumps down from the top of the huge stack of bales, landing on a small open space on the wagon. Then she jumps down onto the ground. Am I supposed to do that?

"Come on!" she says.

I give her a, 'are you serious?' look.

"You can jus' climb down, if yer scared." Challenge accepted.

I won't mention how the jump went, because it didn't go well. Once I'm on the ground, Laura starts laughing.

"What's so funny?" I ask.

"Nothin'." She walks away, still laughing, toward the truck, climbing into the driver's seat. I get into the back, and I'm not even sitting down before Laura pulls away, flooring the pedal, turning back toward the barns. This girl's gonna be the death of me, I swear.


	7. Chapter 7

Laura's Point of View

I get back from my run the next morning and find Jeremy in the kitchen, making breakfast. 

“Hey,” I greet.

“Mornin’.” he says, giving me a piece of bacon. 

“This 's why we're best friends,” I tell him, just as the rest of the guys start to wander downstairs, dressed in sweats and loose tshirts.

“Good morning,” Liam says cheerfully.  Someone’s in a good mood. 

“How ‘re ya’ll doin’ today?” I ask as we all sit down at the table and begin to eat breakfast. “How’s th' sunburn?”

“Better, mine’s almost gone,” Harry says. 

“Mine too,” Niall adds, his mouth full of pancake. 

“Good, tha’s good.” 

I notice that Louis doesn’t talk as much as he normally does. Classic sign of someone plotting something. Better watch that one.

After we eat, Jeremy volunteers to do dishes as his way of saying thanks for letting him stay the night, and the rest of the guys and I go out to the barn so I can show them the routine for feeding the horses.

“So, ya’ll know where th' feed is, each horse gets half a bucket o’ grain every mornin’ an’ every night.”

I grab six buckets and fill them with grain, then hand five of them to the guys. I take the sixth one, and walk over to my horse, Rebel, and give him his breakfast, then Jeremy’s horse, Colonel.

I go back to the tack room, and cut open a bale of hay. 

“Each horse gets one flake,” I instruct, handing them each two flakes to give to two horses. I feed Rebel and Colonel, and then walk out to the water hydrant. 

We make sure all the horses have water, and then put the buckets back in the tack room. Hmm…. that’s funny, I could’a swore there were seven buckets, but I only count six…

No sooner do I think about it than I am covered in water, being dumped on me from the missing bucket.

I hear laughing, and turn to see Louis standing behind me, an empty bucket in his hands and a smirk on his face. I just shake my head and half smirk. 

He has no clue what he’s just started.

****************************************************************************************

“What happened ta you?” Jeremy asks when I walk in the door of the bunkhouse, still covered in wet clothes.

“Ask Louis,” I say, going up to my room and changing into clean, dry clothes.

I come back downstairs just as Jeremy is giving Louis ‘the look.’ It’s the look that I call ‘the big brother look.’ Uh oh, somebody’s in trouble… Then Jeremy breaks into a grin, like he knows something no one else does, and he’s not gonna tell anyone. I hate that look. Cause he never tells me what he’s thinking when he gets that look. Even when it’s about me. 

“So… Waddya wanna do now?” Jeremy asks. 

I shrug. “I dunno.” 

“Is there any… work ta do?” He asks, hinting at getting rid of the guys. 

I shake my head. “Gave ‘em th' day off.” He nods, then walks over to the couches in front of the TV. Grabbing the remote, he plops down on the leather couch and turns on the flatscreen. 

I roll my eyes and walk outside to take Rebel for a ride. There’s a tree stand calling my name. 

Louis’ Point of View

“So, Laura says yer causin’ trouble,” Jeremy tells me after a while of watching some show called Duck Dynasty, leaning back into the brown leather of the couch we’re sitting on. 

“Maybe. If I am, she started it,” I reply, not taking my eyes off  the TV. 

He laughs. “Yep, that’s what they all say.”

This has me curious. I turn to him, and eyebrow raised. “What do you mean by that?”

He shrugs. “People always say she’s th’ one that starts stuff. She don’t start nothin’. She finishes it.” 

Huh? She clearly started this.  _She_  was the one that insulted my favorite drink,  _she_  didn’t tell me there was hay in my hair, even though I looked absolutely redonkulous. 

‘But that doesn’t-”

“Louis, I think you should leave the poor girl alone. She’s probably had enough of you already,” Liam scolds. Had enough of me? Pshhh. Too bad if she has, because she has a whole three months to spend with me. It’s up to her how it goes. 

“Sooo… what is Laura like?” Harry asks. 

Jeremy grins. “I knew this was comin’.” He takes a sip from the glass of water Laura brought him before she walked out the door to who knows where.  “She's a bit of a wild thing... She’s alright, I s’pose. Smart. Graduated at th’ top of ‘er class. Real stubborn, ‘most always has ta get her way. But she’s worth ten in a fight. Real scrapper, that'n. She’s a shit liar though.”

“What? She fights?” Zayn asks, astonished.

“Yessir, when she gets mad ‘nuff. That don’t happen too offen though. But when it does, ‘s best ta jus’ leave ‘er alone. She don’t ever stay mad fer too long. She’s protective, an’ real loyal. Kinda like a dog, but better.” He nods to himself, as if he’s pleased that he made that analogy so well, then continues. “She don’t like none o’ that sissy girly shit, she’d jus’ as soon puke than wear pink.”

I think he’s just given me an idea… Mwahahahaha! 

“She puts on a tough act, but once ya get ta know ‘er, she’s real nice. Sweet, even. She us’lly talks more ‘n she’s prolly been doin’ while ya’ll ‘ave been here. She ain’t scared o’ the dark or nothin’, she ain’t really scared o’ nothin’ at all.”

“That makes sense. She’s got a huge dog to protect her. I wouldn’t be afraid of anything if I had a dog like Yankee,” Harry says. Yes, Yankee. One thing that I have to get past to make this plan that’s forming in my head work.  

“Does she have a mother?” Niall asks.

“Well, she does, obviously, or she wouldn’t be here, but I dunno where she is 'r if she’s still alive or nothin’. Mr. Eugene don’t talk 'bout ‘is wife. I ain’t sure Laura even knows.” Hmmm… I wonder what it’s like growing up without a mother. Not that I want to try it or anything, just wondering. Would that be the reason she is the way she is, “rough around the edges,” as Paul put it? Ehhh, I’ll probably find out sooner or later. 

“Does she have a boyfriend?” Harry asks. Of course Haz would be the one to ask that. 

“Nope. Last one was… ‘bout six ‘r so months ago,” Jeremy replies. I love how he doesn’t question our curiosity, it’s like he’s used to being asked questions about Laura. Well, he would have to be, if she treats everyone the way she’s been treating us, being all quiet and not talking.

“Have you ever dated her?” Niall asks, joining in the conversation.

Jeremy snorts a laugh. “Naw, she’s always said I’m too messy. An’ she don’t like guys who chew.”

“What’s that mean?” Liam asks. 

“Means 'e chews tobacco. Nasty shit. Rots yer teeth,” I hear Laura before I see her, walking into the kitchen with two brown leather bags in her right hand, and in her left hand, 

“Is that a gun?” Harry asks.

“It ain’t a toy, if that’s what yer thinkin’,” she replies. “Jeremy, could you skin these things fer me? I ain’t no good at it.”

Jeremy sighs, getting up from the couch. “I know darn well you can, yer jus’ sayin’ that ta get outta it. Wadja get?” 

“Couple rabbits. Nothin’ big.” She turns to the sink, and I catch a glimpse of her face. There’s a long cut down the length of her right cheek, and it looks fresh, a small trail of blood still running down her face. I’m almost positive she didn’t have that when she left about an hour ago.

“Whoah, where’d you get that cut, Laura?” Harry asks, getting up. He wants to get a closer look, I’m assuming. 

“Squirrel got me. Almost hit ‘im, but ‘e was too fast.”

Sure enough, he walks right up to her like she didn’t just kill two innocent little bunny rabbits, and stands there, looking right at her. The whole time she’s just washing her hands, acting like the cut doesn’t bother her at all. 

Jeremy take the brown bag outside, along with a few scary looking knives. 

Harry reaches out, as if to touch it and see if it hurts, but Laura grabs his wrist in her hand, then turns to him. 

“If I wanted you ta touch my face, I’da told ya to,” she says quietly. “There’s a white box under th' sink in th' bathroom, couldya go get it please?” She lets go of him when he nods, then he walks into the bathroom, and comes back out with a big white box.

“Set it on th’ table,” Laura says quietly. “Please,” she adds, after Harry gives her a look. 

He sets the box down on the table, then awkwardly stands there as she dries her hands off and walks over, taking a seat in one of the chairs. 

“Erm, do you want help, or…?” Harry asks.

“I think I can get it. Thank ya though.” She opens the box and starts pulling out bottles and stuff that I think is for her face. I shrug, and turn back to the TV. 

It’s not that I don’t care, don’t go thinking that, but in the few days that I've known her, I've learned that she doesn't easily accept help.

I hear a few hisses of pain come from the kitchen, and I almost want to go help her out, make it stop hurting, but I stay put. She probably wouldn’t let me help her anyways. 

About forty or so minutes later, Laura comes around with a plate full of brownies, giving one to each of us, even Jeremy who came back in about ten minutes after he left. I notice a small note, written with red ink, on the white napkin that my brownie is resting on. 

**Game on.**

Not really paying much attention to it, I take bite of the brownie. It’s really good, heavenly even. Goodness, I really like it. 

Laura’s Point of View

He saw it, he saw the note. I warned him. He has no clue what he’s setting himself up for. I’ve been sitting out here, waiting for it to hit him. It’s been almost two hours, it should be any minute now. 

Just as I’m about to give up and go to my room, I see a flash of blue run toward the bathroom. Yep, there it goes. Don’t you worry, it’s not poison or anything stupid like that. Let’s just say he won’t be coming outta the bathroom for awhile.  Too bad it only lasts for about five minutes….

The other guys look at each other, wondering what’s wrong with Louis. They don’t know that his brownie was part of a much smaller special batch. I haven’t pulled this one since college when I wanted my roommate to leave me alone. 

I hope this ends this, and yet I want it to keep going. I have an entire arsenal of prank stuff that hasn’t been used in forever. 

About half an hour later, Louis comes out of the bathroom, and gingerly sits back down on the couch. I don’t have to look at him to know he’s glaring at me, I can feel his eyes boring into me. I smirk, knowing it’ll make him angry, and keep my eyes on the TV. 

Jeremy leans over toward me. “Whadja do this time?” he whispers. “Looks like he’s gonna try ta kill ya.” 

I turn toward my best friend, giving him an innocent look. “I dunno what yer talkin’ ‘bout, Jerbear.”

He gives me a look that tells me he knows I’m lying, and I get up.

“Well, better go get started on supper,” I say walking toward the door. Jeremy follows me, saying goodbye to the other guys as we walk out the door. 

“So what did ya really do?” he asks once we’re outside. 

“Made a special brownie fer ‘im,” I reply, grinning. 

“Lulu, you know that stuff always comes back ta bite ya in the ass,” he scolds. I can tell he thinks its funny though, he’s trying to hide his grin. 

“Well, he started it, ‘s ‘is own fault.” When Jeremy laughs at my response, I give him a weird look. “What so funny?” 

“He said th’ same thing ‘bout you.”


	8. Chapter 8

Laura's Point of View

The whole meal, Louis kept sneaking glares at me. I have no clue why. It’s almost like he was scared he was gonna get a second round of what he got this afternoon. I wouldn’t do that though. Never use the same prank twice in one day. That’s for amateurs. I even wrote another note on his napkin, saying not to worry about this food, cause it’s clean. 

I spose suspicion comes naturally after being tricked into eating something that sends you running to the bathroom faster than a hog from the butcher, but he doesn’t need to worry ‘bout his food any more, I’m probably not gonna do that again. Not in front of Daddy anyway. If he caught me being not perfectly nice to the hired hands, he’d make me stay in the house with him, and I wouldn’t be allowed to go back to the bunkhouse. 

We’re back in the bunkhouse now, the horses are fed, and it’s dark outside. I’m in the kitchen, cleaning up the rabbits I shot earlier, putting the cuts of meat into containers and stacking them in the fridge. 

After I’m done, I go upstairs to my room, and get ready for bed. Once I’m under the covers, I turn off the light above my pillow and plug my phone into the charger. 

Yankee climbs up on top of the blankets, laying his head on my stomach. And for awhile, I just lay there and think.

I wonder, what it would be like to have a family. Like, a whole family. With Mama. There are times when I think that Mama just up and left, and others where I think she died in some horrible, tragic way, and that’s why Daddy doesn’t like to talk about it. I hope she didn’t leave 'cause of me, or die ‘cause of me. That would be rough to find out.

I think that the reason I am the way I am is because I didn’t ever learn how a lady’s s’posed to act. I know the basic stuff, like I’m not s’posed to be super rude or anything, but as far as how I’m s’posed to act around people I haven’t known for a really long time and are now living in my house… I have no clue. Jeremy was always the one to initiate conversation in the beginning of our best friendship, I never really had to do much to get to know him.

That’s the kind of person he is though, he lets people right in. No matter who they are, no matter how much he might get hurt by them. That’s one thing I envy him for, he can just accept people right away, I have to be shown that I can trust them before I let them in. 

Maybe he’s right, and I should watch what I say more often. I have a tendency to speak before I think, and it gets me into trouble sometimes. But who can really blame me? I had an English teacher, Mrs. Moore, and she would literally encourage us to say whatever we were thinking at the moment. At first I thought, hey, why not? But I quickly found out that she really only wanted to hear us spit back  what she wanted us to learn, not what we really thought of her “cute” new shoes. Those were some ugly ass shoes, I swear. After about the first two days of her class, I hated it. Never skipped, but I didn’t look forward to English twelve anymore. I was really happy when I graduated and didn’t have to see her ever again.

Anyway, where was I going before that yucky tangent…. oh yeah, me watching what I say. I guess I could give it a try. Maybe it’ll make it easier to get along with these guys for the summer. I don’t want to get too attached to them, cause they’re just going to leave and forget about everything that happens, but I s’pose we can be friends. Yeah, friends sounds good.

****************************************************************************************

“Laura?” A soft voice says, waking me up.

“Unnngghh.. What?” I say tiredly, slowly opening my eyes.

“There’s weird noises outside my window… I can’t sleep,” Niall says. I might not know all their voices yet, but I know Niall's when I hear it.

“What kinda noises?” 

“Like, howling and stuff. It’s scary.” That got my attention. 

“Where’s it sound like it’s comin’ from?” I ask, sitting up and looking at him.

“That way.” He points off to the East, out my window. I open it, and, sure enough, I hear howling in the distance.

“Kay. Stay here, I’ll go look.” I get up and pull on a pair of sweatpants over my shorts, grabbing my knife and pulling on my boots. 

“Wait,” he says once I get to the door, a sleepy Yankee at my heels. “You’re gonna leave me here?” 

I nod. “Yer safer in here than if ya go with me.”

He nods, and I continue out the door. I’m almost to the bottom of the stairs when I hear...

“Laura?”

“What?” I turn around to see Niall standing at the top of the stairs.

“Be careful.” I smile.

“I’m prolly scarier ‘n whatever’s out there, I’ll be fine.”

Niall’s Point of View

Laura’s been gone outside for about ten seconds, and I’m already regretting letting her go by herself. I know she’s probably dealt with whatever it is that’s making the scary noise, but it might be dangerous. 

I walk into Liam’s room and shake him a little. 

“What?” he asks once he opens his eyes and sees me standing there. 

“There’s a scary noise outside and I told Laura and she went outside and she hasn’t been gone that long but I have a bad feeling about it and-”

“Whoah, whoah, whoah, slow down. Laura’s outside why?” He sits up, rubbing his eyes. 

“There was a scary noise outside and she went to see what it was. She told me to stay inside.” 

“So she’s out there with the scary noise, alone?” He stands up and slides on a pair of jeans, then walks toward the door to his room. I follow him out and down the stairs.

“Not completely, she took Yankee with her.” Liam turns around to look at me, an eyebrow raised. 

“Does she know what’s out there?”

I nod. “She seemed to. She said she was scarier than whatever it was.” 

“But what if she isn’t?” He looks as worried as I feel.

Suddenly there’s a loud growl from just outside the wall, and we both snap our gazes to the window. The growl is followed by another one, and a thunk, then a thud.

We both run to the window, opening it and looking out. Laura’s there, with Yankee right next to her, and they are facing a - oh, my gosh, is that what I think it is?

“Is that a wolf?” Liam asks, his eyes wide, like mine probably are. 

“I dunno.”

Laura walks right over to it, and pulls something out of it. I notice that it’s not moving, just laying there. Did she just kill it? 

“Laura?” I whisper-yell to her.

She looks over to see both of us standing there. “Got it. Go back ta sleep,” she says.

“What is it?” Liam asks.

“Coyote. But it’s dead. So go back ta bed.”

“But- did you just-?”

“Yeah, I did. Go back ta bed. It’ll be gone when ya wake up.” She walks away from the window, toward the barn, and Yankee follows her.

“Well, I guess we should go back to bed then,” I say.

*****************************************************************************

The next morning, I walk down the stairs to see Laura in the kitchen, making breakfast like usual. She’s wearing jeans over her long legs, and a dark blue tank top. Her hair is braided again, this time over her right shoulder.

“Hey,” she says once I walk up behind her. She didn’t even turn around, how did she know I was there?

“Mornin’,” I reply. 

She hands me a plate, and says, “there’s food on th' counter, eat up.” Don’t have to tell me twice.

The other lads slowly come down the stairs, and fill their plates, sitting down at the table. Louis seems a bit more smiley than yesterday, I wonder what he’s up to. 

“So Laura, what was that thing?” Liam asks.

“Coyote.”

“Why was it here?” I ask.

“Prolly tryin’ ta get at th' horses or somethin’. They do that.”

“Wait, what are you talking about?” Harry asks.

“There was this scary noise last night, did you hear it?” I ask him.

He shakes his head. “Uh - uh, I didn’t.”

“Well,  _I_  did. That’s why I was in your room when you woke up,” Louis says. Laura gives him a weird look, but doesn’t say anything.

“Well, I went and told Laura, and she went outside, and found out what it was,” I explain.

“Yeah, and then she killed it,” Liam adds. 

“She what?” Louis almost shouts. 

“I killed it,” Laura speaks up, “Ya got a problem wi’ that?” 

“I didn’t say that,” he sasses right back, giving her a glare. 

“Really? Wouldja rather ‘ave had it sneak inta yer room and kill ya? Cause I’m perdy sure that’s what it coulda done.” Laura says solemnly. Louis stays silent as she gets up and walks over to the sink, putting her plate on the counter and filling the sink with water to wash the dishes. 

“We’re puttin’ hay inta th' hayloft today,” she says after awhile. “Make sure ya wear long pants.”

“Why?” Zayn asks, “It’s hot outside…” 

“Cause if ya don’t yer legs ‘re gonna get all scratched up. Not fun,” Laura replies. 

 We put our dishes in the sink and go upstairs to get ready for what I assume will be a long day of work. 


	9. Chapter 9

Harry's Point of View

This isn’t half as fun as I thought it would be. I’m not complaining, not at all. I just had a different idea of what this would be like.

What am I doing? I’m up here in this dusty, hot, humid hayloft with Laura and Zayn, stacking hay. The humidity is really the only bad part about it. 

After we fed the horses, Laura showed us how the whole thing works, and it’s actually pretty neat. So outside, where the other lads are, there’s this metal thingy that looks like a conveyor belt that has spikes on it, and it goes from the ground outside the barn all the way up to and just barely into the window of the hayloft. The lads throw a bale onto the ‘hay elevator’ as Laura calls it, and the spikes stick into it, and as the chain thing turns, it pulls the bale up, up, up, and into the window, then drops it onto the floor of the hayloft.

That’s where we come in. Once the bale hits the floor, Zayn and I have to stack it with the others. Laura helped at first, but after about twenty bales, she climbed onto the pile and had us throw the bales up to her so she could stack them on top of the others. But I can’t tell how many bales are left. It doesn’t feel like we stacked this many on Wednesday. 

We can’t have huge breaks today, Laura says there’s rain on the way and she doesn’t know when it’s going to start, so we just have to keep going. 

So here we are, soaked in sweat, even though I’ve been using my shirt as a towel and hanging it on a rusty nail sticking out of the wall, throwing bales up to Laura. The only sounds are the creaking of the chain on the hay elevator, the sound of the bales hitting the floor, and Laura’s humming. 

She’s been humming the same song all day, and I have no clue what it is. I want to ask her, but I’m not sure she’ll answer me. She’s still being quiet around us, something I hope changes soon.

The next bale fall, distracting me from my thoughts. As I go to pick it up, one of the strings slides off the side, and the hay goes everywhere. 

I groan in frustration, which catches Zayn’s attention. 

“What did you do, mate?” he asks, walking over. 

“One of the strings came off, and it kind of all fell apart,” I explain. 

“Sooo… what do we do?” he asks. I shrug.

“I have no idea.”

“Maybe you should ask Laura,” he suggests, picking up the next bale as it hit the floor. 

“Me? Why me?” I ask. I don’t wanna ask her, what if she gets mad?

“What’re you two doin’ down there?” I hear Laura call. 

“Nothing!” I say at the same time that Zayn says, “Harry broke something!”

I give him a glare as Laura jumps down onto the floor of the hayloft, landing almost silently. She walks over and looks at the bale that was laying in pieces all over the floor. 

“Well, this ‘s irritatin’. What happened?” she asks. 

“I went to pick it up and the string slid off the side,” I tell her. 

She nods. “Yep, it happens.”

“So what do we do?” I ask. She shrugs. 

“Jus’ leave it, nobody’s gonna notice. There’s hay everywhere anyway.”  Well, that’s easy enough to figure out. “But try not ta do it again, alright?” I nod, and she climbs back up to the top of the stack. 

****************************************************************************

About two in the afternoon, it started to rain. Luckily, we had just put the last of the hay in the hayloft, and parked the wagons in the barn.

Unfortunately, we didn’t make it back to the house before the rain started, and we’re stuck in the barn till it stops. So we are sitting up in the hayloft, waiting out the rain. We’ve moved some of the hay bales closer together, and we are now sitting on them, the lads and I talking, and Laura playing with her necklace. 

I feel a bit bad, like we should be including her in the conversation, but I’m not sure how to. 

“Hey Laura?” Liam asks.

She looks up, giving us a view of her beautiful face. “Huh?”

“You wanna play a game?”

She raises and eyebrow. “What kinda game're ya talkin’ ‘bout?”

“Like, twenty questions or something. How about it?” She thinks it over for a moment, seeming a little at war with herself over it for a second, before she nods, and scoots closer to us. 

“So, who goes first?” Niall asks. 

“I’ll go first,” Liam says, “Laura, how old are you?”

“Jus’ turned twenty,” she replies, “You?”

“Well, Niall and I are twenty, Zayn’s lucky, his birthday’s in January, otherwise he’d be the same age as us, but he and Louis are twenty one, and Harold here is nineteen,” Liam answers. 

“Aww, wee lamb,” she says, lightly punching my arm. 

“I’m not that young,” I protest. 

“You’re younger than the rest of us,” Louis says, a smirk on his face.

“Have you been to college?” Zayn asks. 

“Yessir, I have.”

“Which one?” I ask. 

“Auburn.” 

“What did you study?” Louis asks.

“Don’t I get ta ask some questions?” Laura laughs. It’s a beautiful sound, I hope I get to hear it more often.

“After you answer mine,” Louis says.

“Veterinary Medicine,” she says, “What ya’lls favorite food?” 

“Well, I’m not picky. I’ll eat anything,” Niall says, laughing.

“I like steak. That steak you made the other day was pretty good,” Zayn adds. 

“And I liked the meatloaf you made,” I mention. She smiles. 

“And the pancakes have been good,” Liam says. 

“So whats your favorite food?” Louis asks.

“Frostin',” she answers without hesitation, and her answer makes us laugh. “What? ‘S good.”

“What do you do for fun?” I ask.

“Drive my truck, ride my horse, go huntin’. I read once ‘n awhile. Don’t get much free time,” she answers.

“Why not?” Zayns asks.   

“Gotta lotta work ta do most all th' time, not much extra time ta mess around.”

I find myself nodding, getting what she’s saying.

“So what’s your favorite song?” Liam asks her. I can tell from the look on her face that she gets that we’re going to be the ones asking the most questions. 

“I dunno.. I like a lotta songs.”

“Well, who’s your favorite artist?” I ask, trying to help her.

“Josh Turner.” No hesitation, she must like him a lot. 

“What’s your favorite song by him?” Liam asks.

“Anythin’ he sings.” Well, this isn’t working. We laugh. “What? He’s amazin’.” 

“All right then, what’s your favorite color?” Zayn asks

“Turquoise.”

“How many boyfriends have you had?”

“I knew this was comin’,” she sighs, “six.”

I feel my eyebrows go up, as do the rest of the lads’. “Really?”

She nods. “Really really.”

“Who?” Niall asks.

“Yew prolly won’t know ‘em, but Luke Schultz, Jake Schmidt, Alan Gray, Paul Wolf, Wyatt Kieth, an' Jack Schmidt.”

“Do they live around here?”

“Some of’em do. Wyatt left, I dunno where ‘e is. Jack an’ Jake live ‘round th’ corner from Jeremy. Alan’s somwh’re up in Michigan or somethin’, Luke lives somwh’re ‘round town, an’ Paul’s a cop.”

“A cop?” Louis asks. 

Laura nods. “Yessir, a cop. Makes no sense how ‘e got th’ job though.”

“Sooo… are you…?” I ask awkwardly. 

“No, I ain’t,” she mumbles, knowing what I’m trying to ask. I can’t say I’m surprised, but I almost am. She doesn’t seem like the kind of girl to just give it up.

“So…” I can tell by the look on Louis’ face that he’s about to break out the dirty questions.

“Don’t ask questions, I dunno much, it was jus’ once,” Laura says before I can give him the look that tells him to shut up. 

Oh.. that makes more sense. That fits, I suppose. 

“Which one?” Zayn asks. 

“Oh God, if’n I knew ya’ll was gonna ask these questions, I wouldn’ta said I’d play.” She looks down for a moment, then back up at us “It was Wyatt. Two years ago, I was eighteen.” There’s a pause, quickly broken when Laura mutters, “ask somthin’ else.” 

“Alright, ummm…. What’s your middle name?” Liam asks, going back to polite questions.

“Lynn,” she answers. “Ya’ll?”

We all tell her our middle names, and she laughs when she hears mine. “Edward? Like Twilight?” 

I put my head in my hands, trying not to laugh along with her. I haven’t heard that one before. 

“Hey, I didn’t mean i’ like ‘at,” she says, laying her hand on my shoulder.

“No, it’s not - I haven’t heard that one before,” I say, finally laughing. 

She punches my shoulder, like full-on punches me, saying, “what th’ hell? I thought you was cryin’ r somethin’. A’most felt bad.” 

“Ow,” I say, rubbing my shoulder. That actually hurt. 

“What?” she asks. 

“My shoulders are sore,” I pout. 

“Aww, poor you,” she fake pouts back at me. “Hang on.” 

She stands up and moves so that she’s behind me, and places her hands on my shoulders. At first I’m not sure what she’s doing, but once her thumbs press into my aching muscles, I immediately relax, letting her rub circles on my shoulders.

“That’s a pretty name though, Laura Lynn,” Liam says. 

“Thanks. Got it fer my birthday,” Laura says. I can hear the smile in her voice when she says it. 

“I’m thirsty,” I say. I feel a tug on my hair, and soon my head is being pulled up so that I see Laura looking down at me while I look straight up at her. 

“Yer awful whiney, ya know that?” she says. “My shoulders hurt, ’m hungry, ’m thirsty,” she lowers her voice an octave or two as she imitates me, making the other lads laugh. 

“Sorry?” I smile, hoping that she’s probably just joking. Sure enough, one side of her mouth curls upwards in a cute half smile.

“‘S alright, I guess.” she looks at Zayn, releasing my hair and going back to massaging my shoulders. “Where’s th’ cooler we brought up here?” 

“It’s over there,” he points, “but we drank all the Gatorade that was in it already.”

“Where’s th’ other one that ‘s outside?” she asks.

“Ummm… still outside?” Niall says, the answer coming out as more of a question. 

I hear Laura sigh, then her hands leave my shoulders. “A’right, I’ll go get it.”

Before I can say anything, she’s down the ladder and outside. I can barely see her through the window, but I see a flash of blue go out, the come back inside. Soon she comes into view, climbing up the ladder, the strap of the cooler over one shoulder. The only difference from before is that she’s drenched from going out in the rain. 

It’s like she dunked herself in a pool or something. Her hair is dripping, and there’s little droplets of water running down her arms, face, and neck.

“‘S a ‘lil wet outside,” she says, tossing me the blue cooler as she steps onto the hayloft floor. 

“No way,” Niall jokes, “I thought it was sunny out.”

“No sir, it ain’t.” Laura walks back over and sits down in her spot by me again, shaking the water from her hair in my direction once she gets close enough. 

“Hey!” I protest, trying to push her away.

“Oh, did tha’ get on you? ‘M sorry, I had no idea.” The smile on her face gives it away that she meant to do it, and I can’t help but to laugh along with her as I get a drink out of the Gatorade bottle in the cooler. 

“So why aren’t you in college now?” Liam asks, going back to the question thing.

“Had ta drop out. Daddy fell off ‘is horse ‘n broke ‘is hip. Somebody had ta take care ‘o th' place.”

“So you just dropped out of college? What about your degree or whatever?” Louis asks.

“Fam’ly comes first. Then other stuff.” 

Can I just say that I think it's adorable that she calls her father 'Daddy?' Cause it is. I find it admirable how she cared so much that she put her dream on hold so that she could come home and take care of her dad.

“Couldn’t you hire people to take care of the ranch?” Liam asks. 

“We do,” Laura says, laughing, “That’s why you guys‘re  here.”

“Oh yeah! Duh!” Liam says, his face turning red. 

“Daddy doesn’t want jus’ hired guys out there though, ‘e wants someone ‘e can trust out there with ‘em.” That makes sense, I guess.

“So… erm… if you don’t mind me asking,” Zayn says, “Where’s your mum?”

Laura immediately looks down, not saying anything. From the corner of my eye I can see her grabbing the pendant on her necklace and taking it between her fingers, rubbing her thumb over one side of it.

“Ya want th’ truth?” She asks.

“You don’t have to tell us if you don’t want to, love,” Liam says reassuringly, and the rest of us nod, agreeing.

“No, ‘s ok, ‘s jus’-” she pauses for a second, “I dunno.”

It takes me a moment before I realize that that’s her answer. 

“I dunno where she is. Daddy don’t talk ‘bout Mama. 'E don’t even have pictures out no more.”

The whole time she keeps a neutral expression, talking very softly, but keeps playing with the necklace. 

“You’ve never asked?” Niall questions. 

“I used ta, when I ‘as younger, but every time I bought up Mama, Daddy’d get this look on ‘is face, an ‘e didn’t talk fer awhile, then ‘e’d tell me ta go play in my room fer awhile. As I got older, I got more curious, cause people was askin’ an’ I didn’t know what ta tell ‘em. But I didn’t ask, cause every time I did, I’d hear Daddy cryin’ in th' middle o’ th' night, an’ I couldn’t stand it, so I quit askin’.” Her voice cracks at the end of her sentence, and she sniffles a little. 

There’s a long pause as we take in what she’s told us. Mr Johnson seems like such a strong man, I didn’t think it would be possible for him to be so broken on the inside. Something bad must’ve happened for him to not talk about it at all. 

I'm glad that she seems to be opening up to us, but there's still something in the way that she looks away from us as she gathers herself that tells me she doesn't really want to talk about this.

“So how long do you think the rain is gonna last?” I ask, trying to change the subject.

“Shouldn’t be much longer,” Laura says, looking out the big window of the hayloft. “Th’ clouds ‘re gettin’ lighter.” 

“So what else are we doing today?” Louis asks, catching on to what I’m doing, trying to keep Laura’s mind off of what we were talking about. 

“Umm.. we gotta feed th’ horses, then there’s not much else, n’less ya’ll wanna go down ta th' Wilder’s tanight.”

“What is there at these things?” Niall asks. 

“There’s a few bands each night - this ‘s th’ first one, so all ‘f us ‘re playin’. There’s some drinkin’, but not too much, there’s dancin’.” Laura seems to be back to normal now, just a little quiet. 

"What do people wear to these?" Louis asks.

"Clothes," Laura shoots back. "Jus' normal clothes. Nothin' fancy."


	10. Chapter 10

Zayn's Point of View

About seven thirty we all pile into Laura’s truck, and she drives down the road, pulling into the driveway of a tall white house with a big red barn behind it.  

I can see Jeremy’s truck sitting by the open door of the large barn, and Laura pulls up, parking beside it. After we get out of the truck, we walk inside the barn, Laura carrying her guitar case. 

As we walk into the barn, I’m amazed at what I see. I expected a run down, old-looking interior. But what's inside is the exact opposite. Big lights are on the ceiling, illuminating the large building. Hay bales line an area in the center of the barn, which must be the dance floor or something. On the other side of the barn, the large sliding doors are wide open, letting the cool summer breeze blow through the barn, lowering the warm temperature from outside by several degrees.

Just in front of the open doors on the other side of the barn are two old pickup trucks, one blue and one gray, backed up against each other, with wooden planks across the ends of the open tailgates, connecting them into a stage for the bands. The sides of the truck beds that are facing the barn are removed, making it easier for us to see and easier for the band members to set their equipment up. There are circular tables between the dance floor and the stage, covered in red checkered tablecloths. 

“Not this again,” Laura mutters, a scowl on her face.

I follow her glare and see Jeremy standing by the edge of the stage, his arms around a blonde girl that’s about half as tall as he is. They’re just staring at each other, smiling. That must be his girlfriend. 

“Why’s she here a’ready? ‘E’s not gonna get anythin’ done with ‘er here,” Laura grumbles.

“She can’t be that bad,” I say. Laura laughs humorlessly.

“Wait’ll ya meet ‘er. She’s cute till she opens ‘er mouth. That oughta change yer opinion real fast.”

The small girl doesn’t seem that bad, to be honest. She makes Jeremy smile, what could be so bad about her?

“Ya’ll can sit at one ‘o th’ tables if ya want while we set th’ stuff up. There’s food at that table over there iff’n ya wanna eat,” Laura says, gesturing to the long table along the wall. 

She goes off behind the stage to put her case down, and then I see her walk over to Jeremy and not-so-subtly break up the little love fest that was going on. I see the short girl glare at Laura as the taller girl talks to Jeremy, most likely about what they have left to do. 

Before Laura leaves, she smiles at the short, blonde girl. But it’s not a genuine smile. More of a ‘kiss my ass’ kind of smile. This girl is just full of sass. I’m guessing she really doesn’t like Jeremy’s girlfriend. 

“There ya are!” Laura shouts across the barn, looking toward the door we walked in earlier. 

I turn my head to see who it is, and I think I know who it is without being told. 

He looks almost exactly like Jeremy, so he must be his brother. The only difference is this one is a little shorter, not as clean-looking, and he looks a little grumpier. As he steps inside, I see him throw a cigarette to the ground, then step on it with his worn boot heel to put it out.

“Yer late,” Jeremy says. 

“Well, hello to you too big brother,” he says, grinning once he sees Laura. “Hey Lulu.”

She smiles at him, and once he reaches her, he wraps his arms around her in a big hug. 

“Hey Kylie-bear,” Laura says once they pull apart. “You got taller.”

“‘M only 17, ‘m still a-growin’,” he replies, still smiling. “Who’re they?” He nods in our direction.

“They’re th’ new hands Daddy hired. Yew should go say hi. They’re perdy nice.” 

Kyle walks over, Laura right behind him.

“Guys, this’ ‘s Kyle. ‘E’s Jeremy’s brother,” she introduces us. 

We say hello, and Kyle and Laura sit down at the table with us.

We talk a little, introducing ourselves, and then Laura and Kyle go to finish setting their things up. 

Before long, there are more people walking around the barn, talking and eating.

There are a few girls that have come over to talk to us, but they all kinda left after a while. Maybe there’s something that they think is weird about us or something. 

Laura’s Point of View

I’m walking around the big barn, sipping on my lemonade, when I hear, “Laura! I haven’t seen you in forever!”

I turn toward the sound of the voice, and see one of my best friends, Ann Kossey. 

“Hey!” I reply, walking over to her. 

“It’s been forever!” she repeats. 

“It’s been a week, Annie.”

“Well, seems like it’s been forever!” she laughs. 

Ann and I met in eighth grade, in an ag class we both took. We are part of the same FFA chapter, and we are both regional officers. 

I look behind her and see my other friend, Ashley. And next to her is - oh snap, I wasn’t ready for this.

“Hey Rob,” I say, reaching out to shake the tall guy's hand. He isn’t having it though, and pulls me in for a tight hug. He’s always been a hugger, but I’ve never quite gotten used to it. It still makes my heart beat faster every time I'm this close to him. 

Ashley clears her throat, flipping her long brown hair over her shoulder, and I reluctantly pull back from the hug. I’ve always liked Rob, ever since we met, and she knows that, but these past couple years, she’s been acting a bit... flirty around him. She dated him once, much to my disappointment. 

The thing is, she asked him right in front of a ton of people - one of them being me - and him being the nice guy he is, he couldn’t say no. However, she got too clingy after a while and he ended up ending it after about a month. I got over him, and we’re still friends, but I still have a  _tiny_  amount of feelings for him. Ok. I won't lie. I really like him. 

“Hey Laura,” Rob greets, unaware of the tension between Ashley and I. 

We all see  each other a lot, at least once a month at the regional meetings. We are all regional FFA officers - Rob is the President, I’m the Reporter, Ann is the Vice President and Ashley is the Secretary.

“So how are you liking this so far?” he asks, grinning down at me. 

I shrug. “‘S alright. Hasn’t quite started yet.”

“I bet you’re gonna be the best act of the night,” Ashley says. 

“Well, I don’t mean ta brag ‘r nothin’, but yeah, we will,” I joke. 

“Laura, who’s that?” Ann asks.

I follow her stare to the table where the guys are at, talking and laughing with each other. 

“Them? They’re-” I start.

“No, no, no, that one. The blonde.”

I smile. Of course she would notice Niall’s blonde hair. She’s always had a thing for blondes.

“Why don’tcha go ask ‘im yerself?” 

“Alright, I will.” She fixes her shirt and runs a hand through her dark hair before walking past me and toward the table he’s sitting at. That girl, I swear she can talk to anyone. 

“Lulu! I’ve been lookin’ all over fer ya!” I hear Kyle’s voice behind me, and when I turn to see him, he’s motioning me to come closer. 

“What?” I ask once I’m right next to him.

“We got ‘bout five minutes left ‘fore we’re up. Jeremy just wanted ta make sure ya knew.”

“Alright, let’s get goin’ then.”

Niall’s Point of View

I see Laura follow Kyle over to a crowd of about seven other people, and they are all handed small glasses. The glasses are raised, and then drank. Must be some sort of thing the performers do.

"So who're you?" a voice from beside me says. I turn to see a girl with dark hair sitting in the seat next to me, smiling brightly. 

"I'm Niall," I reply, holding out my hand for a handshake, which she accepts. 

" 'M Ann," she replies. "You ain't from 'round here, are ya?"

I shake my head. "No, I'm from Ireland."

"Ya don't say? I couldn't tell," she says, nudging my shoulder. I feel my face heat up.

"What about you? Where are you from?" 

"Next door to here. The Wilders an' I have been friends since we was born."

We talk a bit more, and soon the lads are giving us questioning looks, but I don't really care. I like being around Ann. She's fun.

"I think they're startin'," Ann says, turning her attention from me to the stage. 

Then Laura, Kyle and Jeremy climb up onto the stage and pick up their instruments, getting into position. 

Jeremy looks at Kyle, who nods, then at Laura, who just smirks, making him smile and shake his head. Then he nods at Kyle, who begins to play his guitar. Quite loudly, might I add. The crowd cheers, and after a few seconds, Laura starts singing the song. 

(A/N - when the lyrics are  **Bold, Jeremy is singing -** When the lyrics are in  _Italics, Laura is singing **-**_ When the lyrics are _ **Bold and in Italics, both Jeremy and Laura are singing.**  _This first song is I Love Rock and Roll by Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.)

_I saw him dancing there by the record machine_

_I knew he must have been about seventeen_

_The beat was going strong_

_Playing my favorite song_

Her voice fills the air. She’s smiling while she sings and plays her guitar. She and Jeremy are standing in the front of the stage, one on each side, and Kyle is in the middle, a little farther back than they are. Kyle’s guitar is a dark blue, Jeremy’s is red, and Laura’s is turquoise, her favorite color.

_And I could tell it wouldn't be long till he was with me, yeah me_

_And I could tell it wouldn't be long till he was with me, yeah me_

At the chorus, Jeremy joins her, their voices blending together perfectly. 

**_Singing, I love rock and roll_ **

**_So put another dime in the jukebox, baby_ **

**_I love rock and roll_ **

**_So come and take your time and dance with me_ **

Then Laura screams. As in, really screams. 

_Ow!_

I'm assuming it’s part of the song.

I see her grin in our direction, and then she returns to singing alone.

_He smiled, so I got up and asked for his name_

_But that don't matter, he said, 'cause it's all the same_

_He said, "Can I take you home_

_Where we can be alone?"_

_And next we were moving on, he was with me, yeah me_

_Next we were moving on, he was with me, yeah me_

Then Jeremy joins back in.

**_Singing, I love rock and roll_ **

_**So put another dime in the jukebox, baby** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So come and take your time and dance with me!** _

_Ow!_

Again with the scream. She does it really well, I’ll give her that. 

There’s a guitar solo, and Kyle steps forward, playing each note without a single mistake that I could hear. 

When he’s done, he steps back, and Laura begins to sing again, the crowd, including the lads and myself, goes crazy. 

_He said, "Can I take you home_

_Where we can be alone?"_

_Next we're moving on, he was with me, yeah me_

_And we'll be moving on and singing that same old song, yeah with me_

They stop playing, and Laura begins clapping her hands above her head to the beat. The crowd joins in, singing along. 

_**Singing I love rock and roll** _

_**So put another dime in the jukebox, baby** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So come and take your time and dance with me** _

The guitars hum to life again, and they keep singing. 

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So put another dime in the jukebox, baby** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So come and take your time and dance with** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So put another dime in the jukebox, baby** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So come and take your time and dance with** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So put another dime in the jukebox, baby** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So come and take your time and dance with** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So put another dime in the jukebox, baby** _

_**I love rock and roll** _

_**So come and take your time and dance with me!** _

The crowd roars, the sound echoing off the barn walls. 

“How’re ya’ll doin’ tonight?” Jeremy smiles into the microphone. 

There are several high pitched screams from the table right in front of him, and I see Laura roll her eyes. That must be where Jeremy’s girlfriend is sitting. Sure enough, I see the short blonde girl, standing on a chair, blow a kiss to Jeremy.

“That’s great!” Jeremy says, “Well, most all ya’ll know us, but fer those who don’t, I’m Jeremy, tha’s my brother Kyle, an’ this here’s our friend Laura.” 

I see Laura smile “Jeremy’s th’ talker,” she says into the microphone, getting a few laughs.

“Alright, this next one I would like to dedicate to my beautiful girlfriend, Jesse.” He points to the girl standing on the chair in front of him, and I can hear her high pitched squeal all the way on the other side of the barn. 

I can practically hear Laura roll her eyes as she starts strumming her guitar. Kyle and Jeremy join in, and soon, Jeremy’s singing, looking right at his girlfriend.

(A/N - this song is My Maria by Brooks and Dunn)

**My Maria don't you know I've come a long, long way**

**I been longin' to see her**

**When she's around she takes my blues away**

**Sweet Maria the sunlight surely hurts my eyes**

**I'm a lonely dreamer on a highway in the skies**

**Maria, Maria I love you**

Laura joins in during the chorus, singing the echos. The rest of the time she’s just strumming the guitar and looking blankly out at the wall. We lock eyes once or twice, and both times she makes a funny face at me. There’s a few couples out on the floor dancing, and Zayn gets pulled into othe crowd by a short girl with pigtails. 

**My Maria there were some blue and sorrow times**

**Just my thoughts about you bring back my piece of mind**

**Gypsy lady you're a miracle work for me**

**You set my soul free like a ship sailing on the sea**

**She is the sunlight when skies are grey**

**She treats me so right lady take me away**

The whole time Jeremy is singing right at his girl, and she’s smiling back at him, laughing with her friends when he winks at her. 

**My Maria**

**Maria I love you**

**My Maria**

**Maria I love you**

**My Maria**

**Maria I love you**

After they finish, Jeremy blows a kiss to the blonde girl, and she pretends to catch it. There’s a collective ‘Awww’ from the crowd, and Laura’s quick to roll her eyes again. 

“Well, we got one more ‘fore we go, so here it goes.”

Kyle starts this one off, the song having a sort of… I don’t know what to call it, twang? kind of feel. The other two join him, and before long, Jeremy begins singing. 

(A/N - this song is Boondocks by Little Big Town) 

**I feel no shame**

**I'm proud of where I came from**

**I was born and raised in the boondocks**

**One thing I know**

**No matter where I go**

**I keep my heart and soul**

**In the boondocks**

Laura joins in, her voice adding a new sound.

_**I can feel that** _

_**Muddy water runnin' through my veins** _

_**I can hear that** _

_**lullaby of the midnight train** _

**And it sings to me and sounds familiar**

_**I feel no shame** _

_**I'm proud of where I came from** _

_**I was born and raised in the boondocks** _

_**One thing I know** _

_**No matter where I go** _

_**I keep my heart and soul** _

_**In the boondocks** _

This song seems like a way of saying who they are, what they’re like. It’s a way of declaring themselves, and as the other people in the barn sing along, I feel like I’m in the middle of something. Something that bonds these people together, makes them one, even though they come from different places, they’ve all got one thing in common: the way they grew up, how they live, and they’re not afraid to show it. 

Laura’s voice fills the large room as she sings the next part alone. 

_I can taste that honeysuckle_

_And it's still so sweet_

_When it grows wild_

_On the banks down at old Camp Creek_

**And it calls to me like a warm wind blowin'**

_**I feel no shame** _

_**I'm proud of where I came from** _

_**I was born and raised in the boondocks** _

_**One thing I know** _

_**No matter where I go** _

_**I keep my heart and soul** _

_**In the boondocks** _

_It's where I learned about livin'_

_Its where I learned about love_

_Its where I learned about working hard,_

**_And having a little was just enough_ **

_It's where I learned about Jesus_

_And knowin' where I stand_

_You can take it or leave it_

_**This is me** _

_**This is who I am** _

**Give me a tin roof, a front porch, and a gravel road**

**And thats home to me, feels like home to me**

I get it, the way they grew up is what shaped them into the people they are today, and they won’t change for anyone. 

They sing the chorus again, and just as it seems that the song is over, Jeremy sings again. 

_**You get a line I'll get a pole** _

_**We'll go fishin' in the crawfish hole** _

_**Five card poker on Saturday night** _

_**Church on Sunday morning** _

**Then Laura starts, making it sound almost like they’re singing in a round, but I like it, it sounds good.**

They do that a few times, until the song is over, then they both put their arms up, and Kyle joins them, getting more claps than the singers themselves. 

“That’s all for us, folks!” Jeremy shouts, then they jump down off of the stage, and there’s a song playing from what I assume is one of the old truck’s radios while the next band sets up their equipment. 


	11. Chapter 11

Laura’s Point of View

As I walk back through the sunset air to my truck, guitar case in hand, Jeremy, Kyle and I talk about how the set went.

“That was amazin’! Best one yet!” Jeremy says excitedly.

I nod, agreeing. “Them solos though,” I say at I pat Kyle on the back. “You been practicin’, ain’tcha?”

Even in the dim light, I can see his face turn a dark shade of red as he shyly smiles, something I would normally tease him about. 

“It wasn’t as good as you singin’ Joan Jett,” he tells me, still smiling slightly. 

By this time, we’re at the trucks, and I put my guitar in the back of mine while Jeremy and Kyle put theirs in Jeremy’s truck. 

By the time I lay my guitar down carefully in the bed of my truck and turn around to join them, Kyle and Jeremy are already walking away, their heads close together, like they’re talking about something secret.

I stay a few paces back, not wanting to eavesdrop, until we get to the barn. 

Once I’m in the building, I find where the guys are at, and go see how they’re doing.

“Laura! There you are!” Niall says once he sees me. 

“Yep, ‘m here.”

“That was really good! You guys are awesome!” Harry compliments.

“Shucks, that weren’t nothin’.” 

“Who else is playing?” Liam asks.

“Th’ Schmidts ‘re next, an’ then them girls that sing Taylor Swift, an’ Luke Schultz,” I answer.

They nod, and I feel someone tap me on the shoulder. 

Liam’s Point of View

Laura turns around to look at the guy behind her, and he smiles. 

“Hi Lulu,” he says.

“Hi Almanzo,” Laura replies. 

He’s tall, about my height, with short, dark hair and brown eyes. 

“You were really good tonight, just like always,” he compliments. It sounds nice, but from the tone of his voice, it sounds a little suggestive. 

I clear my throat, and he looks behind Laura, seeming to notice us for the first time since he walked up. 

“Who’re they?” he asks, nodding toward us. 

She introduces each of us, saying, "they’re th’ new guys Daddy hired.” He nods, not really paying attention.

I don’t like the way this guy looks at Laura. He looks like he wants to eat her or something. I know she’s fit and all, but he hasn’t looked at her face once while he’s been talking to her, if you get what I mean. However, knowing that she can take care of herself, I don’t say anything, I just stare at him with a scowl on my face. 

“Guys, this ‘s Almanzo Wilder. ‘Is fam’ly owns th’ place.”

“Well, I think I should go make sure there’s still enough food, like I was s’posed to,” he says. “I’ll see you later?” 

Laura hesitates, then nods. “Yep. I’ll be here perdy much all night.”

He pulls her into a hug that she clearly wasn’t expecting, and I don’t think she wanted it. 

He sets his chin on her shoulder and glares at me, like I’ve done something wrong. Great, this one must like her. Perfect.

“‘Manzo, yer squishin’ me. Can’t breathe.” Laura’s voice is muffled by his shoulder, but still loud enough that I can hear it across the table from where she’s standing. When he finally lets go, she takes in a huge breath. He must have been hugging her really tight. 

“Bye Lulu,” he says, and walks away. 

“Bye.”

She waits until he’s out of sight before turning back to us, an angry scowl on her pretty face. 

“Can’t stand that kid,” she mutters. The lads and I laugh, knowing there’s no chance of him getting to her. 

“You wanna sit down?” Zayn asks, being polite.

“Naw, ‘m fine. Can’t see otherwise.”

_If you see a faded sign at the side of the road that says_ _15 miles to the..._

“Loooovvve Shack!” Laura shouts, along with many of the others around the barn. 

Soon there’s a crowd of people making their way to the dance floor, and Laura’s pulling us up out of our seats, saying, “come on, let’s go dance!”

I find myself following her through the maze of tables, now empty, to the large open space in the middle of the barn. 

Everyone seems to be doing the same sort of dance, and Laura jumps right in, dancing along with them.

We stand on the edge of the dance floor, until the girl that had talked to Niall before, Ann I think her name is, came up and pulled him into the crowd, leaving the rest of us behind.  Laura looks over, then hops over to us, still dancing.

“You know this one?” she asks. I shake my head as she stops dancing for a second. Out of the corner of my eye I see the other lads shaking their heads as well. 

“I’ll show ya. ‘S easy.” she walks over and stands in the middle of the line we’ve formed, and then starts dancing again

_I got me a car, it's as big as a whale_

She begins by twirling an invisible lasso with her right hand, then her left, then rolling her fists in a circle around each other, then she claps twice.

_And we're headin' on down to the Love Shack_

She then crosses her right hand over her body, laying it on her left hip, then does the reverse with her left hand. Then she pulls her right hand back and puts it over her right back pocket, and does the same with her left hand. Then she jumps forward, backward, and side to side, doing a quarter turn. 

_I got me a Chrysler, it seats about 20._ _So hurry up and bring your jukebox money_

“Ya got it?” she asks, still dancing. 

“I think so…” I mutter, beginning to copy her movements.

_The love shack is a little old place where we can get together._ _Love Shack, baby..._

I move so that I’m next to her, and begin to smile as I figure it out. I look at her and she nods, a smile on her face. I can see her mouth moving, and hear her singing along obnoxiously loudly to the song.

_Sign says  "Stay away, fools."_ _'Cause love rules at the Love Shack._

_Well, it's set way back in the middle of a field._ _Just a funky old shack and I gotta get back..._

The rest of the lads join in, even Zayn, and by the time the song is over, we’re all laughing and having fun.

“Howdy ya’ll! How’re we doin’?” The next group is on the stage, and ready to start. It's two guys, both tall and lanky. They look alike enough to be brothers, both with dark hair and similar looking faces. The crowd of people cheers, eager for them to begin. 

“Ya’ll can stay out on the dance floor, we got one that has a dance. How many of ya’ll’ve seen Footloose?” One of them asks.

Laura raises her hand, along with several others. 

“Well, this song’s from that movie, an we thought it’d be fun to play. So here we go,” the other says.

The two guys start strumming their guitars, and everyone starts going crazy. Yelling, dancing, everything. Laura walks over to us. 

“You know thiss’n?” I shake my head. “Me either.” She walks off toward the food table, and the lads and I follow her, watching in awe as she loads a plate with tons of food. 

“Are you gonna eat all that?” Niall asks. He’s probably hoping he’ll get whatever’s left. That boy and his food…

“Course I am,” Laura replies. “Big girl gotta eat.” She walks over to a table with two other girls and sits down, talking to them a little before tucking into her plate of food. 

We follow her, not really knowing what else to do.

“Hey, gonna play cards inna few once Annie gets back. You can join iff’n ya want,” Laura says as we sit down. 

“Laura, who’re your friends?” one of the other girls asks. 

“Ask ‘em yerself,” Laura says, smirking at her.

“Well, since Laura has her sassy pants on, I’m Erica, and this is Amy,” the shorter of the two girls says. 

Amy looks about Laura’s age, while Erica looks a little younger. Both have dark hair and dark eyes. 

"I'm Liam," I start, letting letting the letting the other lads introduce themselves.  

Erica starts talking, telling us about herself, and within a few minutes I learn that she’s on the same volleyball team as Laura, she’s going to be a senior in high school this year, and she has a dog that’s bigger than she is. That’s not very hard to do, she’s a very small girl. Her head doesn’t even come up to my shoulder. 

“Hey ya’ll, watcha doin?” Ann asks as she walks up, sitting by Niall. She leans into him like she knows him. 

“Lads, this is Ann,” Niall says, nudging the girl with his shoulder. Hmm… is there something going on there?

“Hey Annie,” Laura starts, “what happened to ‘I don’t like blondes no more?’” She raises an eyebrow as Ann giggles, shrugging her shoulders.  

 Laura shakes her head, pushing her now empty plate to the side, and grabbing the deck of cards from the center of the table. 

“Alright, what’re we playin’?” she asks. 

“I say BS,” Erica suggests. 

“You know darn well ‘m awful at that game,” Laura laughs. 

“Exactly. I can win at this one.” The younger girl smirks at Laura. 

“Alright, who’s playin’?” Laura asks, turning to look at all of the people at the table. 

“I’ll play,” a deep voice says. Laura immediately turns around, a huge smile on her face. 

“Hey Rob,” she says, “thought ya done left.”

“Couldn’t leave without a card game,” he says, sitting down in the chair next to Laura. Is it just me, or did she just blush?

“Who else?” 

Amy says that she’ll play, and I decide to join, even though I have no clue how to play. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll help ya,” Erica says when I ask her how this game works. 

Laura deals the cards, then lays down two of the ones from her hand on the table, face down.

“Two aces.”

Then it’s Amy’s turn, and she puts a single card down on top of Laura’s aces. 

“One two,” she giggles. “Ha. One two.” 

Then it’s my turn.

“You put down whatever number its at, which is three. If ya don’t have ‘em, ya put down some other card an’ lie. If someone catches ya lyin’, ya gotta pick up all the other cards,” Erica explains. I nod.

Lucky for me I have a three. I lay it on the table, saying, “one three.” 

Erica smiles at me, then puts down two cards.

“Two fours.”

Then it’s Rob’s turn. He looks through the cards in his hand a couple times before pulling one from the middle and putting it on the table. 

“One five,” he says, looking down. 

Laura looks at him for a second. seeming as if she wants to say something, but she lets it go, quickly setting her next card down on top of Rob’s. 

I feel a tug on my shirt, and lean down so Erica can tell me something.

“Laura won’t call Rob, even though she knows he’s lyin’. She always covers for 'im.”

Hmm… maybe she likes him? Or maybe it’s like with Jeremy, and they’re just really good friends.

I’m so busy thinking that I forget that it’s my turn, until Erica nudges me, pulling me from my thoughts. 

“You’re eights,” she whispers. I look at my cards. Two threes, a five, and a queen. Hmm… I pull one of the threes out, and lay it on the table, face down.

“One eight,” I lie. Laura looks at me, raising an eyebrow. Please don’t…

“Two nines,” Erica says, laying her cards down before Laura can call me out. I smile at her, knowing she just covered for me. 

“One ten,” Rob says, laying down his card, this time a bit more confidently. Laura doesn’t look like she’s questioning it this time, she just pulls one card from her hand and lays it on the table.

“One Jack.” That doesn’t sound right. Laura would have said that a bit more… Laura-like. Amy goes to lay her card down, stopping when she sees me staring at Laura, who won’t look at me. 

“Hang on,” I say. 

“Call it,” Erica says. “I dare ya.”

“Go on, Liam, call it,” Laura says, a small smirk on her face. She’s back to confident Laura, except for the twitch in her eye. She keeps looking to the left, at Amy. 

“You’re lying,” I say. Laura smiles, then laughs a little, reaching out and flipping over the card she just laid down. It’s a two. 

“Ya got me,” she laughs, picking up the whole pile of cards and adding it to the ones in her hand. “Told ya, ‘m awful at this game.”

As Laura struggles to organize the mess of cards in her hands, Amy lays down a queen, and the game goes on. 

“Ya’ll’re a buncha filthy liars,” Laura mutters as she put the cards she has in order, making Amy and Rob laugh. 

After awhile, I’m down to my last card, and it’s the exact card that I need. When it’s my turn, I lay it down, leaning back in my chair with a smile on my face. 

“That’s bull,” Laura says, reaching over and flipping the card over. “Dang,” she says once she realizes that it was the real deal, and I wasn’t lying. “Well, that’s th’ end o’ that.”

“I oughta be gettin’ home. Got horses to feed,” Rob says, standing and stretching. “See ya’ll later.” He waves before walking away, out of the barn. 

Laura follows him with her eyes for a moment, then looks back at the table, putting the cards back into a neat pile, a small frown on her face. Now I’m almost sure that she likes him. 

“That’s it for us, thanks for listening!” the girls on stage shout before hopping off and letting another performer take the stage. I didn't really listen to them, but from the faces people were making, I think they weren't the best.

“Hey ya’ll!” the tall guy says. “I’ve got two songs for ya before ya’ll gotta go home.” He sits on a stool with an acoustic guitar and a microphone in front of him. Not much equipment to set up. 

He begins strumming, and the large room falls silent. 

Once he starts singing, the rest of the people join in, and it amazes me how they know every word to all these different songs. 

_**I grew up south of the Mason Dixon** _

_**Workin' spittin' huntin' and fishin'** _

_**Stone cold country by the grace of God** _

_**I was gasin' up the other day** _

_**And an ol' boy pulled up with a license plate** _

_**From Ohio I thought oh good lord he's lost** _

_**From his wranglers to his boots** _

_**He reminded me of Chris LeDoux** _

_**And that Copenhagen smile** _

_**Country must be country wide...** _

When the song is over, the whole room erupts into cheering, and the guys takes a bow before sitting back down. 

Laura’s Point of View

“Alright gents, grab yer girl, thiss’n a slow song,” Luke says before he starts strumming his guitar again. 

I feel a tap on my shoulder, and turn around to see Kyle standing there. 

“Hey,” I say, smiling. 

“Hey Laura, um, do you wanna… um..”

“Sure, I’ll dance with ya,” I finish for him, smiling as I stand up from my chair and follow Kyle onto the dance floor.

_**You know I'd fall apart without you** _

_**I don't know how you do what you do** _

_**'Cause everything that don't make sense about me** _

_**Makes sense when I'm with you** _

We get to an open spot in the middle, and Kyle turns around, waiting for me to do something. 

I smile, cause he doesn’t seem to know what to do, then take his hands and set them on my waist, lacing my fingers together behind his neck afterward. He smiles a thank you, then we start swaying side to side along with the music. 

_**Like everything that's green, girl, I need you** _

_**But it's more than one and one makes two** _

_**Put aside the math and the logic of it** _

_**You gotta know you're wanted too** _

I have a feeling that there's something behind this song, and I'm not sure if I like that Kyle's halfway mouthing the lyrics to me. I'm hoping he isn't thinking what I think he's thinking, because I don't want to have to shut him down on anything. I'll feel bad afterward if I have to do that. 

I see Kyle glance behind me, then he smiles and looks down at our feet. I’m assuming Jeremy’s somewhere back there making faces at him. 

_**'Cause I wanna wrap you up** _

_**Wanna kiss your lips** _

_**I wanna make you feel wanted** _

_**And I wanna call you mine** _

_**Wanna hold your hand forever** _

_**And never let you forget it** _

_**Yeah, I, I wanna make you feel wanted** _

I look over my shoulder for a second and see Jeremy weaving through the crowd, slowly making his way toward us, a grin on his face.  

_**Anyone can tell you you're pretty, yeah** _

_**And you get that all the time, I know you do** _

_**But your beauty's deeper than the make-up** _

_**And I wanna show you what I see tonight…** _

“Hey Short Stuff, we gotta take Lori home. Just thought I’d letcha know. We’ll be waitin’ in th’ truck,” he says, a shit-eating grin on his face. Oh no, he only makes that face when... no... eeeeewwww!

Kyle nods, then Jeremy walks away, waving goodbye to me. 

“Well,” he says disappointedly, letting me go, “Guess I’ll see ya.”

I nod. “Yep. See ya… Good luck with that," I say, nodding my head toward a disappearing Jeremy. 

He looks at me one more time, then slowly turns, walking toward the door. 

“Laura!” I hear Ashley call. I groan, then turn around to see her waving me over to where she is. 

“Do you know where Rob is?” she asks once I reach her. Of course she wants to know where Rob is. That’s all she ever asks me anymore. 

“He left. ‘While ago, actually,” I reply. Her shoulders slump.

“Oh. I thought he woulda said bye… at least,” she whines. I roll my eyes, knowing she can’t see me, as she’s looking at the floor. The poor guy probably wanted to get away from her and her clinginess.

“Hey Laura, when are we gonna have to go?” I hear an Irish voice ask. 

I look at the stage to see Luke putting his stuff away, then turn to Niall.

“We could prolly leave now iff’n ya’ll want.” I see him glance back at the table, where Harry and Louis are talking, and Liam is poking a sleeping Zayn. 

“We’re probly good to leave now,” he replies, a smile on his face.

I nod, a grin begginging to form on my face. “Alright. Let’s get outta here, 'fore we gotta help clean up.”


	12. Chapter 12

Zayn’s Point of View

It’s way too early to be going anywhere. It’s only, like, ten in the morning or something. We didn’t get back to the ranch until around midnight, and then I couldn’t fall asleep. 

I gotta say though, that barn dance was pretty fun. I had fun anyway. 

Anyway, we are up, super early, having already eaten breakfast and piled into Laura’s truck. I also have to say this, her truck is enormous. Not even kidding. It’s huge. Taller than Harry, even.

Laura said that if we needed anything we could come along with her on her trip into town, and I ran out of hairspray yesterday, so I decided to ride along. Harry said he needed some cologne, and Niall wanted more snacks. So Liam came along to make sure we behaved ourselves, and Louis stayed back, saying he had some stuff he had to do. 

This ride is taking forever. We just got off the dirt roads about half an hour into the drive, and Laura said that was only about the first third of the trip. Why does everything have to be so far away?

The radio is playing some song that I don’t know, but Laura seems to. She’s quietly singing along, and she sounds amazing. 

“How much farther?” Harry whines from his seat in the back, next to me. I roll my eyes. Poor Haz, he’s so impatient. 

“Bout 'n hour more,” Laura replies. Harry groans. 

“Whyyyy?” 

“Cause that’s how far it is,” she says calmly. This girl has serious patience. I’m getting irritated with Harry, and I’m used to his whining. I bet she’d make a good mom. 

“So what is there to do?” Liam asks. 

“In town?” Liam nods. “There’s a movie theater, a Walmart, ‘n a couple other stores. There’s a school - that’s where I play volleyball - an a couple restaurants.”

“You play volleyball?” Harry asks, suddenly interested. 

Laura nods. “Yessir.”

“What do you do? Like, what… position? do you play?” Niall asks. 

“ ’M a middle hitter. I block. I serve.”

“Are you good?”

She shrugs. “I s’pose. ‘M a'right at it.” 

There’s a short silence, only the radio making noise, and I have so many other questions that I want to ask. 

“I know yer thinkin’, you can ask what ya want, if I want, I’ll answer it,” Laura says. “You prolly won’t get another day like this fer awhile.”

I grin. 

“So out of all of us, who’s your favorite?” Harry asks, cutting me off before I could ask anything. 

“At th’ moment, not you,” Laura says, and Haz pouts while Niall, Liam, and I laugh. When we’ve calmed down, Laura says, “I don’t do favorites.”

“Why don’t you ever wear your hair down?” I ask. 

“Cause it gets in th’ way. An’ I don’t wanna,” Laura says. 

“How long is your hair?” Liam asks.

“Long, I dunno. I ain’t measured it fer awhile.”

"Why is this door a different color?" Harry asks, pointing to the passenger door of the truck. I noticed earlier that it was a lighter red than the rest of the metal on the truck.

"Long story short, Kyle thought it'd be funny ta open it while I was goin' through a car wash. Brush thing went by, door was gone. Had ta get it replaced. Took near a month 'fore th’ rug dried out."

“Is your hair curly or straight?” I ask. 

“Why’s it matter?” she sasses back. “Jus’ kiddin’. It’s somewhere in th’ middle. Depends on if I wash it an’ dry it right away ‘r not.”

"Do you like Rob?" Liam blurts. Rob? Who’s Rob?

I see her raise an eyebrow in the rear view mirror.

"Why'dya wanna know that?"

“Just curious,” Liam replies.

“I dunno,” Laura answers, looking out the window. 

The rest of the ride there continues like that, us lads asking questions and Laura answering them. Mostly. There were only a few she wouldn’t answer. 

We pull up at a WalMart, and Laura parks the truck, all of us hopping out afterward. Once we're all out, Laura begins walking away, leading the way toward the large brick building. 

"Hey, aren't you going to lock your truck?" Harry asks, sounding as confused as I feel.

"Naw, ain't nobody gonna steal it. People 'round here don't know how ta drive a stick these days anyway," Laura replies.

The lads and I look at each other, a little confused, but shrug it off and follow Laura into the air-conditioned store.

"So go find whatever ya need, meet me back here before 'leven thirty." Then she walks away, going toward the back, where I can see a display of several CD's.

About half an hour later, we're back in the truck, a few bags in the backseat with Harry and I, and we're going to the next store. Laura says we need more feed for the horses.

She drives into an almost empty parking lot, the few vehicles that are parked there being pickup trucks.  The large stone building is very plain looking, mostly white with one red stripe running around the middle. 

"What is this?" Niall asks as we walk in, a musty dirt smell hitting me right in the face. 

"TSC. This 's where we get most o' th' stuff we need out here," Laura replies. "Ya'll got boots, right?"

"No, not all of us," Liam answers. 

"Need boots ta ride horses," Lara replies. "We'll getcha some then, come on." 

Louis' point of view

I step back from the closet, placing the plastic cups I've filled with water on the floor. I make sure to set them down so that I still have a way out getting of her room. I'm not getting stuck in here like that one time when I did this to Liam. That was not fun. 

You may be asking why I'm putting cups of water on the floor of Laura's room. Well, unfortunately for her, I'm not finished teaching her a lesson she obviously needs to learn. 

 _Nobody_. Messes with the Sass Master.

Once I'm done, I stand on the doorway of her room and admire my handiwork. Yep. I am good.

I walk back downstairs and let Yankee back into the bunkhouse. I had put him outside so he didn't knock over any cups while I was setting them up.

I check my phone. I'm thinking I've got about an hour before they get back at least. Maybe I'll take a nap.

******************

"Aww, look at him! All sleeping," I hear a voice coo.  

"Well, wake 'im up. 'S time fer supper,” I hear Laura say. 

Then a hand is shaking my shoulder. “Lou, wake up," someone says. I think it’s Zayn, from the sound of the voice. I swat at his hand, trying to go back to sleep.

“Louis, come on, there’s food. It’s time to eat,” he continues, still shaking my shoulder. I open my eyes, glaring at him. 

“I’ll have you know that I was having a good dream,” I mutter, sitting up and stretching my arms. 

“You should have gone with us. We went for ice cream after we were done shopping,” Zayn says. 

“Well, I had stuff to do,” I grumble. 

“Like putting cups of water on the floor in Laura’s room?” he asks, raising an eyebrow. “She was pissed when she saw that.”

“Really?” He nods. Good. Serves her right.

We walk out of the bunkhouse, then across the driveway to the main house for supper. When we walk in, the other lads and Eugene are sitting at the table, and Laura’s bringing out the food. Zayn and I sit down as Laura sets the plates on the table. When she sets mine down, I notice a napkin on top of the plate, with her neat handwriting along the edge.

_Is that all you got?_

I look up at her as she sits down across from me, giving me a look that says ‘I know something you don’t.’ Should I be worried?

After supper, the lads and I feed the horses and then go back to the bunkhouse to watch some TV.

Laura comes inside about twenty minutes later. 

“Iff’n you give me yer laundry, I’ll wash it fer ya,” she says, leaning on the back of the couch behind Harry. 

We nod, acknowledging that we heard her, but not getting up to do anything. 

“And there’s church tomorrow mornin' iff’n ya’ll wanna go. Truck’ll be leavin’ at eight,” she adds, poking Harry’s hair. 

“What kind of church?” Liam asks.

“Small church. Mostly old people. Pastor’s perdy nice, 'e's got five kids.” I feel my eyes widen.

“Five?” Niall exclaims. Laura nods, twirling one of Harry’s curls around her finger. Either the tall lad doesn’t notice or he likes feeling her hands in his hair. 

“Yessir. Three boys an’ two girls.”

“But five? That’s a lot,” I say, joining the conversation. 

Laura shrugs. “Not really. There’s a couple families out here that got six ‘r seven kids,” she replies, as if it’s a normal thing. I feel my eyes widen even more, and my mouth falls open. 

“You alright?” Laura asks, raising an eyebrow at me. 

“How?” I ask in disbelief.

“How what?” she asks patiently, trying to figure out what I mean.

“How can people have that many kids? How does that happen?”

She smirks, then says, “well, when two people love each other very much, they d-”

“No, no, no, I know how  _that_  happens. Just… why so many?”

“I dunno. Maybe they jus’ wanted that many. Some folks like big families.”

“What about you?” Liam asks. “How many kids do you want?”

She sighs, looking sadder than before. “I dunno. Maybe a few,” she says quietly, looking down. “So,” she says suddenly, standing up, “I’m callin' it a night. See ya in th’ mornin’.”

She walks away, up the stairs, and into her room, closing the door behind her. 

Now, I’m no psychologist or psychiatrist or whatever, but I can tell that there’s something up. She kinda just shut down. 

I check my phone after a while. “Lads, it’s eleven thirty. Maybe we should go to bed too.”

“Alright,” Liam says, standing up and pulling a sleepy Niall with him. “Are we going to church tomorrow?”

“I dunno. I’ll probably still be asleep,” Zayn says as he rubs his eyes. 

“Me too,” I agree.

“Well, I’m going to go to bed, and if I’m up at eight, I’ll go. But If I’m still asleep, I’m staying here,” Harry says, turning off the TV.

“That’s not a bad idea Haz,” Niall says. 

And with that, we all stumble up the stairs, going to our rooms. 

I open my door - funny, I don’t remember closing it - and groan once I see my bed. 

All my sheets are gone, only the pillows are left on my bed, along with a piece of paper.

I walk over to my bed and pick it up. Sure enough, it’s a note from Laura.

_You want them back, make me breakfast._

Laura’s Point of View

I wake up the next morning and take a shower, then put on my nice jeans and a plaid shirt, sliding my boots on as I grab my Bible and purse. As I walk across the loft floor to go downstairs, the sound of the guys snoring answers my question of whether or not they’ll be joining me for church. I kinda knew they wouldn’t, but I still hoped they would.

When I get to the kitchen, I see a stack of pancakes on the table, the bottle of syrup next to it, along with a fork and knife. At the top of the stack is a small notecard, with what I assume is Louis’ messy handwriting on it. 

_Laura’s pancakes. I want my sheets back._

I sit down at the table with a smile, then tuck into my not-made-by-me breakfast. It's actually quite good. I like this. 

When I finish them, I wash the plate, then write him a note back on a sticky note. 

_Thanks for the pancakes. Your sheets are under your bed. :)_

I tiptoe upstairs and into his room, then carefully stick the note on his forehead before walking out the front door and climbing into my truck and driving off to church.

Liam’s Point of View

It's around one in the afternoon when I hear Laura's truck pull in the driveway. When I hear more than just her voice greet Yankee as as she comes up the bunkhouse steps, I know she's not alone. 

"Lulu! Can I ride Penny today?" a small voice asks.

"I dunno, depends on when yer brother comes ta get ya."

“Okay. What’re we eatin’ fer lunch?” the small voice asks.

“Whadd’ya wanna eat?” Laura asks as she pushes the door of the bunkhouse open and steps inside, followed by a small girl with long blonde hair, wearing a green checkered dress. 

"Grilled cheese! Grilled cheese!" the little girl says, bouncing up and down.

"Okay, hold yer horses," Laura laughs. Then a small gasp is heard when the little girl turns and seems to notice us for the first time since she walked in the door.

"Lulu, who're they?"

"How bout you go ask em? They ain't gonna hurt ya, they're pretty nice," Laura reassures her. But the little girl isn't having it, and practically glues herself to Laura, grabbing ahold of the fabric of her jeans and hiding her face in the taller girl's hip. 

"Hanna," Laura starts, "I can't make ya grilled cheese if yer hangin' on me."

Hanna says something, but I can't hear what it is. Whatever it is, Laura smiles. 

"They'll be nicer'n Kyle," she tells the small girl, gently prying Hanna's hands from her jeans. Once the smaller girl is separated from her, Laura walks toward the kitchen, leaving her standing in place, curiously watching the lads and I.

Hanna takes a step toward us, then stops, looking back at Laura, who nods encouragingly. The little girl turns back to us, and I catch Laura's look that says to be nice to her. 

By the time I look back at her, Hanna's right in front of me, her head tilted to one side in curiosity.

"Hello love," I say with a smile. 

"Hi," she hesitantly replies.

"Liiiiaaaammm, there's nothing on the tele!" Harry whines, catching Hanna's attention. 

"Lemme see it," she orders, walking over to him and holding out her hand for the remote. The curly haired lad hands it to her, raising an eyebrow as she hops up next to him on the couch and pushes a few buttons, changing the channel until she finds a show she likes. Of course it's Duck Dynasty. 

"Can I poke yer hair?" Hanna asks. Harry smiles and nods, leaning down so the small girl can reach his curls easier. 

She slides her tiny fingers into it, curling one around a curl and pulling it until it becomes straight, then releasing it, letting it bounce back into place. She smiles in amusement, then does it again.

After about twenty minutes, Laura brings over a huge plate of grilled cheese sandwiches, sitting on the couch by me. Hanna leaves her spot by Harry, who seems to have quickly become the little girl's favorite, and sits in Laura's lap, eating one of the sandwiches off of the plate Laura holds. 

"Lulu?" Hanna asks, her mouth full.

"Chew yer food, Honey," Laura chides. Hanna chews, then swallows, then speaks again.

"Can I ride th' pony now?"

"Why would ya wanna do that?" Laura asks, tickling the little girl in her lap. 

"Cause... cause I wanna!" Hanna laughs. "Please?"

"I guess..." Laura says. "Go out ta th' barn, I'll be there inna minute."

"Yay!" Hanna cheers, jumping off Laura's lap, the older girl barely catching the plate of sandwiches before it's knocked over. Hanna dashes out the door, laughing happily.

"So where did she come from?" I ask.

"She's Jeremy's lil sister. Her folks asked me ta watch 'er till they got back from lunch," Laura replies. 

"She's adorable," Zayn coos.

"I'll tell 'er ya said that," she replies with a laugh, standing and stretching her arms above her head. “Well, I’ll be out ‘n th’ barn iff’n ya need anythin’.” 

Niall’s Point of View

I can hear Hanna laughing happily through the open windows in the bunkhouse, and it makes me smile. The little girl is so cute, she can make anyone smile. 

Curious, I get up from my seat in my room and walk down the stairs, heading outside to find the girls. 

I find them in the small pen behind the stable, Hanna on top of a small brown pony, Laura leading it along the fence. 

“Lulu! Go faster!” Hanna giggles, smiling widely.

“A’right, hold on,” Laura says. She clicks her tongue and begins to jog, pulling the pony beside her into a trot. Hanna bounces along in the saddle, laughing as she is carried around the pen. I climb onto the fence, sitting on the top rail, and watch as the three of them make their way around the pen. 

“Hey Ni,” Laura calls as they pass me. She doesn’t even look tired. Quite the opposite. She looks happy, smiling up at Hanna while the little girl laughs. 

“Hey,” I reply, watching her braid wave around, sometimes going over her shoulder only to be pushed back. Her hair is really long. 

“Hey mate,” I hear Zayn’s voice say. I turn to see him climbing the fence to sit next to me. 

“Hey.”

“She looks happy,” he says quietly, nodding toward Laura. 

“Yep. Different from most of what we’ve seen so far.” 

I hear a vehicle pulling into the driveway, and turn to see a black pickup truck rolling over toward the fence. The driver’s window rolls down, and Jeremy leans out., waving at Zayn and I.

“Hanna!” he calls.

The little girl’s head turns quickly, her eyes finding her brother. “Jeremy! Lulu, Jeremy’s here!”

“I hear ya,” Laura says, turning the horse and leading it over to the fence. “Hey you,” she calls to Jeremy. 

“Hey yerself,” Jeremy replies with a smile. “How was she fer ya?” 

“Same ‘s always,” Laura says as she helps Hanna climb down from the pony. The little girl quickly slips through the fence, then runs over to her brother’s door, jumping onto the running board and trying to climb in through his open window. 

“Hanna!” Jeremy says with a laugh, “What’d ma tell ya bout this?”

“Ma ain’t here, she ain’t gonna know.” Jeremy continues laughing, even when Hanna is safely inside the truck. He waves goodbye to Laura, then drives out. 

“Do either o’ ya know what time it is?” Laura asks, looking up at Zayn and I. 

“Last I checked, it was around four,” I reply. Laura nods, then leads the pony out of the pen, walking it into the stable. I look over at Zayn, who shrugs. We both hop down off of the fence and follow her into the stable, where she’s unsaddling the pony, talking to it. 

“Ya done good today Penny, yer a good girl.”

The little horse nuzzles into Laura’s shoulder, and the girls smiles, reaching over to scratch behind Penny’s ear. 

“I can’t stay all night, sorry. Got volleyball ta go to.” Laura takes ahold of the pony’s halter, then leads it into one of the stalls, coming back out seconds later and closing the stall door behind her.

She sees us, and smiles, picking up the saddle and walking toward the tack room, setting the saddle on it’s rack along the wall. 

“So, when do we get to ride the horses?” Zayn asks. 

“Prolly tamarra. Got cattle ta move,” Laura replies, leading the way out of the stable and across the driveway to the bunkhouse. 

“It is hard to move cattle?” I ask, not quite sure what it entails. 

Laura shakes her head. “Naw, ain’t too tough.”

Once we’re inside the bunkhouse, Zayn and I walk back over to the couches, sitting back down, while Laura heads up to her room, closing the door behind her. 

She comes back out a few minutes later, a camouflage duffel bag slung over her shoulder. I feel my eyes widen a little when I see what she’s wearing. A black tshirt with the sleeves cut out, and a large slit cut deep into the sides, and a pair of short ( _really_  short) black shorts. Her legs are really tan. Are those spandex?  

“I should be back ‘round ten, there’s food in th’ fridge iff’n ya get hungry,” she says as she walks down the stairs, her clunking boots drawing the rest of the lad’s attention from the TV.

“Where are you going?” Liam asks.

“Volleyball.”

“Like… like that?” Harry asks. She nods. 

“An ’m goin’ now. So see ya,” she says, waving and walking out the door. Moments later, I hear the roar of her truck’s engine, and the sound of gravel flying as she drives away. 

It’s quiet for a few seconds after she leaves, then a low whistle is heard. We all turn to where the noise came from, and end up looking at Louis. 

“Those… are some nice legs.”


	13. Chapter 13

Laura's Point of View

The next morning after breakfast, I tell the guys to put their boots on and meet me in the stable.

"Um, what do you mean?" Louis asks. Shit, he wasn't with us yesterday. He doesn't have boots to wear. It's too early for this kind of thinking.

"What size shoe d'ya wear?" I ask. Maybe...

"Ten," he replies.

"Perfect." I grab an extra pair of my cowboy boots, size ten, from under my bed, then toss them at him as I walk out the door. "These should work. Already half broke in fer ya."

"Thanks..." I hear him say.

One good thing about me having big feet for a girl, I just saved $50.

Harry's Point of View

Well, that was unexpected. I thought she'd get mad or something, not give him her boots. Why do we need a specific kind of boots to ride horses anyway?

When we get out to the stable, I ask Laura.

"So yer feet can slide in an' outta th' stirrups easier. Th' soles o' these'ns 're smooth. Iff'n there's treads on yer boots, they can get stuck in th' stirrups. Not good iff'n ya fall off an' can't get yer foot out in time," she answers. Alright, so it's a safety thing.

"So, how much d'ya'll know 'bout ridin'?" she asks us. We all sort of look at each other, then Niall speaks up.

"I've ridden a carousel horse before." An amused smile makes it's way onto Laura's face.

"Alright. I'll be startin' with th basics then." She then walks into one of the stalls, and emerges a few seconds later, leading Rebel out by his halter. She walks him into the middle of the aisleway, then grabs a rope with a snap on one end from the wall, hooking the snap onto one side of the big horse's halter, then does the same with a rope from the wall on the other side.

"So, first thing is th' saddle blanket." Laura picks up a rectangular shaped, rather thick rug looking thing, laying it over Rebel's back.

"Then th' saddle." She easily lifts a huge piece of leather with dozens of straps attached to it onto Rebel's back, then reaches under the horse's belly, pulling one of the leather straps across from the other side and hooking it through the latch on the side she's on, doing the same with a second strap. "When ya hook the cinch, make sure it's not too tight, not too loose. Should be able ta fit two fingers underneath it," she tells us, adjusting the straps so that they're snug. "Ya get it?"

I nod, and I can see the other lads doing the same out of the corner of my eye.

"A'right then, go saddle up," she says with a wave of her hand. The lads and I turn, going to our horses' stalls. I open the door and step inside, and the big brown horse inside turns to look at me.

"Hey, Misty," I say, walking slowly up to the horse that Laura said was mine for the summer. The horse moves her nose forward, nudging my hand. "You're a pretty girl, aren't you?" I say, petting her soft nose. She makes a low noise, and moves her head to sniff my hair. I like this horse. She seems nice.

Mostly brown, with a white hind end, spots of brown mixed in with the white. What was the word Laura used? Appaloosa, I think it was. Misty has warm brown eyes, which are huge.

I pick up the saddle from outside the stall, with the blanket underneath it, and carry it over to Misty.

The big horse doesn't move, she just stands in place as I swing the saddle over her back, making sure it's facing the right way before reaching under to grab the cinch and hook it on the strap on the side that I'm on.

Once I've finished, I stand back and admire my handiwork. Yep, I think I did a good job.

"So, ya done?" Laura's voice makes me jump, and I turn around to see her leaning on the stall door.

"Um, yeah. I think so?"

"A'right. Good. Here's th' bridle. Ya want help with it?" she asks, handing me another piece of leather equipment. It's much smaller than the saddle, and I have no clue what to do with it.

"Don't be like Louis n' say ya know how it goes. He still ain't figured it out," she adds quietly.

I look over to where Louis is, shaking my head in amusement when I see the expression of confusion on his face as he holds the bridle up in front of him.

"Can you help me then?" I ask. She nods, taking the bridle back from me and walking over to Misty's head.

"Ya gotta be careful so ya don't bang th' bit 'gainst er teeth," she warns, pulling the blue halter off of the horse's head, then holding one end, which I'm guessing is the top, of the bridle and moving it toward Misty's face. She uses her other hand to guide the large metal bar that is attached across the bottom of it into the horse's mouth. Then she pulls the top over Misty's ears, and latches a strap under her chin.

"Ta da!" Laura says, putting her thumbs up and smiling goofily.

"Thanks," I say, smiling at her cute expression.

"Yer welcome," she replies. "Take 'er out ta th' round pen, 'm pretty sure th' rest'll be out soon."

I nod, then grab the reins and lead Misty out of her stall, and out the big stable doors to what I'm pretty sure is the round pen, as Laura called it. The fence is in a circle shape, and a circle is round, so this is probably where I'm supposed to be.

I walk Misty through the open gate, then stand and wait. Soon Liam and Niall lead their horses out, followed by Zayn and his horse. Laura brings Rebel out soon after, looping his reins around the fence a couple times before going back into the stables, returning momentarily with a sheepish looking Louis in tow, leading his horse behind him.

While I have an Appaloosa (wow, I feel fancy saying that) Niall has a brown horse with black legs and a black mane and tail, Liam has a brown horse with a white patch over it's eye, Zayn has a white horse with black splotches all over it, and Louis has a white horse with black legs and a black mane and tail.

Laura unties Rebel, who looks almost blue in the morning light, and leads him so that she's in front of us, and we can all see her.

"A'right, gettin' on's perdy easy. Put yer foot in th' stirrup, an' swing yer leg over," Laura says, sticking her left foot into a loop of leather hanging from the saddle and pushing off the ground with her right foot, using the saddle to pull herself up as she swings her leg over Rebel's broad back, grabbing ahold of the reins as the horse begins to move forward. She nods at us, telling us to get on our horses.

"Might wanna pull yer pants up 'fore ya mount up, though." I shrug, tugging my beltloops, then put my foot in the stirrup on my saddle, grabbing ahold of the saddle to help me lift myself up. I push off with my right foot, like Laura did, and swing my leg over, settling down into the saddle. I slide my right foot into it's stirrup, and pick up the reins. I feel Misty move a little underneath me, adjusting to the addition of weight on her back.

Once all of us are successfully mounted, which takes Louis a couple tries because his horse kept moving, Laura begins showing us the basics of riding, like turning and storting and stopping, emphasizing not kicking the horses like they do in movies unless we want to get thrown off. We learn to move cattle, which isn't actually that hard, just riding up alongside them and making noise to get them going.

"Th' horses'll do most o' th' work, yer job is ta point 'em th' right way," she explains.

Then we ride out of the pen, and Laura leads us partway down the driveway, turning into a large field surrounded by barbed wire fencing.

"Make sure ya stay away from th' fence," she warns. " 'S a lil sharp."

For a while the only sounds are the horses' hooves moving through the grass and Yankee's panting as he trots alongside Rebel, his head nearly coming up to the big horse's stomach. But soon I hear the sounds of cows mooing, and when we ride over the hill in front of us, I see a small group of them grazing on the grass in the large field.

"A'right, we're takin' 'em from here inta that field over there," Laura says, nodding toward a gate in the middle of the fence splitting this pasture from the one next to it. "Somebody's gotta ride point 'n lead 'em over there, while th' rest of us herd 'em th' right way." She turns in her saddle to look at us. "Do I have a volunteer?" she asks in a goofy announcer voice, making us laugh a bit.

When none of us speak up, she adds, " 'S not that hard, ya jus' ride inna straight line..." There's a pause, then...

"I'll do it," Zayn says. Laura smiles.

"Good. I was gonna pick you anyway," she laughs, "c'mon, let's get 'er done."

We ride down the hill, toward the small herd, and soon we are close enough that the cows see us.

"Two go 'round 'n get 'em goin' on that side, Zayn, you go up front 'n jus' ride slow toward that big tree up there, two on this side, I'll stay in th' back."

We nod, and split up, each of us going where we were told. I ride with Niall around the back, coming up on the other side of the cows. I heard a loud whistle, and then Yankee starts barking, and the cows begin moving, following Zayn.

We guide the group slowly toward the other field, and they cooperate pretty well. That is, until one of them, smaller than the rest, darts out in front of me, startling Misty. It runs away from the group, and Misty begins dancing in place, as if she's trying to tell me something. I loosen the reins for a second, and Misty starts trotting off in the direction that the stray cow went. I see Yankee running after it as well, trying to get in front of it to cut it off.

Misty practically gallops over to it, turning it around and guiding the cow back to the rest of them. I didn't really do anything, I was just a passenger. These horses are really smart.

Once the cow is lost again in the sea of the others, Laura pulls Rebel up alongside me.

"That was perdy good. Didn't expect ya ta know how ta do that," she praises.

"I didn't do anything, though," I admit.

"That's th' secret. Ya let th' horse do th' work." She smiles, then turns, riding back to her spot at the back of the herd.

After about twenty minutes, we've herded the cows through the gate and into the other pasture, the gate securely locked as we ride back toward the bunkhouse, us lads talking back and forth as Laura quietly rides in front of us.

We get to another fence line, and Laura begins telling us what to do again, that we have to move another small herd, and three more after that.

This herd is a little more stubborn, not following along as quietly as the first. Several of them stray from the group, making it a bit more work for us to keep them going the right way.

The next group is even worse. Laura says its because they're younger, so they have more energy. I never knew getting animals to move the way you want them to was so hard to do.

By the time we break for lunch, our horses are sweaty and tired. We ride up to the bunkhouse and tie the horses to the hitching posts in front of the porch, taking their saddles off and giving them a drink from a bucket of water brought from the stables.

Laura makes sandwiches for us, and then we're back out in the pasture, moving the last two herds from one pen to another. These herds are more cooperative, but we have to ride out farther to get to them, and we have farther to go with them, making the task take just as long as the other three.

"Why do we have to move them?" Liam asks as we ride back to the bunkhouse that evening. All of us are worn out, even Laura seems more tired than usual.

"There's only so much grass in th' pasture fer 'em ta eat, gotta rotate 'em so th' grass can grow back," she replies.

"Why do they just eat grass? Don't they get something else?" I ask.

"There's round bales o' hay in each pasture. They're made ta eat grassy food."

"What's that mean?" I ask curiously as I move so that I'm riding next to her.

"Well, ya know how dogs eat meat, an' horses eat hay?" I nod. "Well cattle eat grassy food, like hay an'... well, grass. They're herbivores."

I nod. "That makes sense."

"So make sure yer horses got feed an' water, then come in a wash yer hands fer supper," Laura calls when we get to the stables.

I walk Misty to her stall, then unlatch the straps of the saddle, pulling it off of her back, which is damp with sweat. I take it into the tack room, then hang the saddle on an empty rack on the wall, Then I walk back to Misty's stall, unlatching the bridle and carefully pulling it off her long nose. Then I put her halter back on, hooking the stall door behind me as I walk out, checking to make sure she's got plenty of water.

I take the bridle to the tack room, hanging it on the hook above my saddle, and grab a bucket, filling it half full before carrying it to fill Misty's bucket. The big brown horse neighs her thanks, then digs into her supper.

When I look across the aisle to Rebel's stall, I see him with his face in his bucket, already having had his saddle taken off, and Laura is nowhere to be seen. Then I hear the ringing of the triangle on the front porch of the main house, letting us know that the food is ready.

The lads and I finish with the horses, feeding the rest of them, them make our way over to the bunkhouse to wash our hands before heading over to eat supper.

Laura's Point of View

I'm riding through a huge field, filled with tall grass and daisies. Rebel and I are galloping through the tall foliage, the bright sun shining in the crystal clear blue sky. It's perfect out here, just the way it's meant to be. The only sounds I can hear are the beat of my horse's hooves against the earth and my own heartbeat. If I could see what heaven looks like, I bet it would be something close to this. Wild and free.

"Laura!" a voice calls from the other side of the field. I pull back on the reins, sitting back in the saddle and stopping my big roan horse before turning to look for the person who called me.

My eyes settle on a tall, thin, dark haired woman standing at the edge of the field, on the edge of the treeline, next to an enormous black horse. I spur Rebel toward them, curious as to what she wants.

As I get closer, I can make out more of her features clearly. She has dark eyes, an average sized nose, and her long hair is pulled back into a thick braid. Her tan skin is worn, crinkling around her eyes as she smiles at me. She's clearly not young, but she doesn't seem old either. Her eyes seem to have a spark in them, an energy, a spirit that refuses to die.

The horse next to her is big. As in, bigger then Rebel. And that's saying something. The stallion has a long flowing mane and tail, and feathery hooves. As he prances around in place, clearly full of energy, I notice a white cross shaped marking painted on his right flank, and his mane moves off of his face enough for me to catch a glimpse of the perfect diamond shaped marking on his forehead.

When Rebel and I are in front of the pair, I pull him to a stop, then swing my leg over the saddle hopping onto the ground.

"Laura," she says, pulling me into a warm hug. I hug her back without thinking, the feeling of her embrace strangely familiar. But I have no clue who she is, where she came from.

She pulls back, holding me by my shoulders, looking me over. She has a necklace just like mine.

"You've grown up so much," she says, a warm smile on her face. Her voice, I know it from somewhere.

"Um... thanks?" I say. How does she know who I am? "I ain't wantin' ta be rude, but who are you?"

She just smiles, and pets her horse. Who is she? I have to know her from somewhere. Otherwise I wouldn't be able to see her face this clearly.

I open my mouth to ask her how she knows me, where she came from, how she got here, why I've never seen her around before, but there's a loud crack, almost as if the ground is barking at me.

Suddenly I'm falling, it's as if the ground has opened up beneath my feet, swallowing me. All I see is darkness, but I can feel myself falling. Down, down, down.

My eyes snap open, and I sit up in my bed.

What the hell?


	14. Chapter 14

Zayn's Point of View

The next morning we're back out in the fields again after breakfast, riding out to move more cows. I like this job so far. It's fun to ride horses in this wide open space, almost no boundaries to how far we can go. I feel so free out here that it's unreal.

The blue sky seems to stretch on forever, stopping at what seems to be the edge of the earth, it's that far away. There doesn't seem to be a cloud in the sky today, and the weather is perfect. Not too hot, but not chilly either. The sun is almost blinding though. It makes me wish I'd worn a hat or something. 

Laura has her cowboy hat on, and I'm wishing that I'd spoken up when we went to the store to get our boots and I saw that rack of hats on the other wall. Oh well, maybe next time.

"You ridin' point again? Or ya want someone else ta do it?" Laura asks, pulling up alongside me on Rebel. The big horse prances around as we ride at a walk to the pasture, his energy seeming to be contagious, and Sam, my horse, begins to dance around a little, suddenly eager to get to work.

"Um.. can I ride somewhere else today?" I ask. Not that it wasn't nice to ride out in the front, I just think it would be better to not get used to doing one thing, I might have to do more than just that.

Laura nods, then we're at the gate of the pen, and I see more cows than yesterday milling around within the fencing. Laura leans over to open the latch on the gate, shutting it after all of us have ridden through. As we get closer to them, I notice that all of them are either huge or really small. This must be where the mothers and their babies stay.

"So we gotta be careful with these'ns," Laura warns. "Don't get between th' mamas an their calves an ya should be a'right. They get a mite protective when they're outside like this."

Then we're moving so that we're going around the herd, making them move toward the gate, following Liam as he rides out front.

Yankee seems to have fun with this job, running after the few that stray away from the group, barking and nipping at them until they return to where they're supposed to be.

These cows seem to be better behaved than the other younger ones. The little ones stay close to their mothers, and the moms keep moving, as if they know how this works and are used to it.

Everything goes fine until Louis rides over to bring back a smaller baby cow. The mother doesn't notice at first, but when she sees him in between her and her calf, she gets angry. She lets out a loud moo before running at him, full speed.

I can't get over there, I'm on the opposite side of the herd. But Laura's seen what's going on, and is hauling on her reins, turning Rebel around and taking off toward Louis, spinning her rope above her head.

If I wasn't worried about Louis, I would be in awe of Laura's skill. She's riding at what has to be about the fastest that Rebel can go, holding on to the reins with just one hand while she leans low over the big horse's neck, almost flattening herself against him as she twirls her rope over her head, the muscles in her arm tense.

When the cow is about to hit an oblivious Louis and knock him out of his saddle, Laura throws the rope, the loop snaking around the cow's neck and pulling her to the side just in time. Louis hears the angry noise that the cow makes, and quickly turns his head to see Laura holding the cow back so it can't get at him.

"Get outta th' way!" she growls at him through gritted teeth, nodding toward the calf. He seems to get what she saying, and quickly rides away, back toward the rest of the herd.

Once the cow can see her baby clearly, she calms down, letting Laura slip the rope from her neck peaceably. The pair of them return to the herd, quickly becoming lost in the sea of the others. Laura, however, isn't so calm.

She rides over to Louis, and I can't hear what she's saying, but I can tell that she's a little ticked off. Louis just nods like the smart lad he is, not saying anything for a while, but then he replies to one of the things she says, and she gets this look on her face. Kind of a 'what did you just say?' look. She doesn't say anything for a second, then rides off, going back to the other side of the herd. What did he say?

Once we get the cows herded into the pen that's by the house, Laura shuts the gate and we tie the horses to the hitching posts outside the bunkhouse again, giving them a drink of water before we go into the bunkhouse for lunch.

Laura makes us mashed potatoes and some pork chops, then after we are done we go back outside. Laura says she's going to show us how to throw the ropes.

Liam's Point of view

"Th' trick is ta flick yer wrist," Laura tells us, throwing her rope at the post in the center of the round pen. The loop flies through the air, landing around the top of the post. Laura wraps the other end of the rope around the thing sticking up at the top of her saddle and pulling back on the reins, backing Rebel up until the rope is tight.

In the evening light, Laura's skin looks darker, almost red in color, and the few rays of sunshine that are left seem to catch a few strands of her hair just right, making them glow like a halo around her head.

Niall goes to try roping the post, but his horse jumps when he throws the rope, making him miss the target.

"Try 'er again," Laura encourages, hopping off of Rebel and pulling her rope off of the post, coiling it up as she walks back toward Rebel. She hangs the rope off of her saddle, and ties Rebel to the fence, standing on the ground as we attempt to rope the post.

Niall's second try is better than his first. I think Half Pint, his horse, knew it was coming this time, so he didn't jump. The loop settles around the post, earning a victory shout from the Irish lad as he wraps the end of the rope around the saddle and backing his horse up.

"A'right, good job," Laura praises, tugging on the rope so he knows to let Half Pint step forward so she can get the rope off of the post. "Someone else throw one."

Once we've all successfully roped the post, the sun is setting on the horizon, and we put the horses back into the stable, feeding them and giving them water.

As we walk to the main house, we talk to each other, including Laura in the conversation. She seems to have loosened up a little around us, and she's joking around with us just as much as she does with Jeremy.

"So, why did we move these cows to the pen up here when the others just went to different pastures?" Zayn asks.

"A'right, since yer new, I ain't gonna make a big deal outta this, but it bugs th' shit outta me. I ain't makin' fun o' ya, 'm jus' explainin' it so ya sound like ya know what yer talkin' bout. Cows are th' mamas. Bulls are th' dads. Calves are th' babies. Heifers are th' girls that ain't had a calf yet, an' steers are th' guys that can't make calves," Laura clarifies. "An we moved these'ns so that we can separate th' calves from the cows an' wean 'em offa th' milk."

"Wow, that was a long explanation," Harry says.

"So is there a reason the steers can't... ?" Niall asks awkwardly.

"Yeah. Those're the ones we use fer meat, an' th' hormones mess with th' taste o' th' meat, so we castrate 'em," Laura calmly replies. "We're doin' that tamarra."

"What?" Louis exclaims in disbelief. I feel my jaw fall open. What? Those poor cows - I mean, ow...

"Hmm?" Laura questions, looking at him like he's crazy. "It's a normal thing," she assures him.

"You just like, cut them off?" he asks.

"Well, not exactly. There's this crushin' thing we use, and it -"

"No, don't, I can't..." Harry whimpers out before making a pitiful noise that sounds a bit like he's scared.

"There ain't no blood 'r nothin'," Laura teases. "It ain't even that bad."

"Still though, it hurts to think about something like that," Niall says, a horrified look on his face.

"It ain't half 's bad 's what we used ta do. Now that was bloody. Yuck," Laura pushes, a smile on her face. How can she speak about something so awful with a smile? That's just... it's because she's a girl. She doesn't know how bad that would hurt.

"No, please," Harry says, putting his hand over her mouth, quickly silencing her. "Not now." She raises an eyebrow, then Harry practically squeals, pulling his hand back.

"Haz? What's wrong?" Louis asks.

"She licked my hand!" Harry exclaims. Laura laughs, shaking her head as she turns to walk into the large house.

"God, it's like having a girl version of Louis," Harry laughs, wiping off his hand on his jeans.

"Whoah, no. She is nothing like me," Louis sasses. "Don't say that."

"Food's done!" Laura calls. We rush up the stairs and into the house, forgetting all about the conversation.

Laura's Point of view

I've been a little out of it all day, that dream last night is distracting me, occupying my thoughts. I can't get it out of my head that I know who that lady was. I know I know. But I can't remember. And that irritates me.

But one thing that's good for getting rid of distracting thoughts is going riding. It's a good thing that that's what we're doing today. It keeps me on my toes, watching for strays and watching out for the guys. I don't know what Louis was doing, but I almost wanted to let that cow run him over. But then I might have lost a horse, and he might have gotten hurt, and then that's on me. That's money out of my pocket. And while I would like to watch him learn things the hard way, I would feel bad if I let him get run over. Hopefully he doesn't do it again.

As I sit on the couch after supper, watching TV with the guys. Everyone's been quiet, probably from being so full from the meal.

"Hey Laura," Liam asks.

"What?"

"How come this economy crisis isn't really affecting you? Like, you seem to be going about things like you would usually do..." he trails off.

"They found oil in th' back pasture, couple years back," I tell them, not taking my eyes off the TV.

"What does that have to do with anything?" Louis asks,

"Oil. Makes fuel fer cars. Worth a lotta money," I clarify. "Get a couple hundred barrels ev'ry month, keeps us perdy set 's far 's money goes."

We got lucky. We had money set aside in case of something like this happening. Others weren't so lucky, and are barely making do with the little they have. The Dillons were pretty set, but they don't have a whole lot of extra to work with. Daddy and I have been trying to help other families out whenever we can, donating money and food.

"So... "

"Yep, daughter of a millionare. Whoo - Hoo." I flail my arms in mock excitement, my tone sarcastic. I hate when people make a big deal out of Daddy having tons of money. Guys seem to think that I have that much money, when I don't. Apparently it makes a difference when they're looking for girls to 'hang out' with.

I've earned every penny that I've ever spent, and I plan to keep working off my own money. I paid for the seven years of college education that I got with my own money, and I'll pay for whatever college classes I have left with my own money. I know this might sound like I'm complaining or bragging or something, but it's how people live out here. It's how I've grown up. I have to work for what I want. I have to earn it. It's a hard knock life.

"Oh." And with that, it's quiet again. Except now it's kind of an awkward quiet. Figures.

After a few more minutes of awkward quiet, I say goodnight to the guys and go up to my room.

Harry's Point of View

"So what did you say to Laura earlier?" I ask once Laura's in her room, the door shut behind her.

"Hmm?" he asks, tearing his gaze away from the TV.

I repeat my question, and he sort of laughs, shaking his head.

"I told her she wasn't my mum, and I can take care of myself," he replies.

"Don't you think that's a little harsh? If it weren't for her -"

"I know, I would have gotten hit, knocked off my horse, yeah, yeah. She told me that too. So I wasn't paying attention one time. Big deal. I'm fine," Louis says, cutting Liam off.

"Did you at least thank her?" Niall pipes up. Louis opens his mouth to make what I assume will be a snarky reply, but shuts it again, brooding over the question.

"No, not exactly..." he says almost shamefully, looking down at his hands.

"You should do that. Soon," Liam scolds. "You've got at least another month and a half to spend with her. You can't be fighting the whole time."

"Fine, I'll tell her tomorrow," Louis concedes.

"No, you should tell her now," Liam suggests, knowing how Louis puts things off.

"Fine, I'll go now," Louis sighs, getting up. He walks up the stairs, and the rest of us turn back to the TV.

I hear him knock on her door, then I assume he opens it and walks inside.

"Get out!" I hear Laura yell, then there's a thwack sound, like she threw something.

My head whips around to see Louis run out of Laura's room, barely pulling the door shut behind him before running into his room. Seconds later, Laura opens her door, poking her head out to look around, going back into her room once she sees no one.

Laura's point of View

I pull the knife out of the wall next to the door where I threw it, silently cursing myself for forgetting to lock the door.

What the hell was he thinking, 'let's just walk into a girl's room while she's changing her clothes, wonder what's gonna happen?' Idiot.

He was lucky I'd been in the process of pulling a shirt over my head, and I already had shorts on, otherwise my aim would have been better. Hopefully this doesn't happen again.


	15. Chapter 15

Laura’s Point of View

Jeremy and Kyle show up the next day around eight, waking me up when they run up to my room and jump on my bed. 

“Good Lord, didn’t yer ma teach ya not ta wake people up?” I groan, pulling the pillow over my head. 

“Aw, c’mon Lulu! We got stuff ta do today!” Kyle whines, pulling the pillow off of my head, the bright sunlight coming through my window nearly blinding me. 

“Did ya make food?” I ask, blindly swatting at the two brothers as they laugh at my sleepiness. 

“Not yet. Thought you might wanna help.” I snort out a laugh. 

“Ya wake me up without food, then ya want me ta help ya make it? Nope,” I sass, pulling my blanket over my head.

“Lulu!” Jeremy says, poking me.

“Make me food, then ‘ll get up,” I grumble.

“Fine grumpy ass,” Jeremy sighs, though I can tell he’s still smiling. “I’ll make ya food. Get up.”

“Thank ya,” I say, throwing my blanket off of my body as he walks out of the room.

The blanket is thrown back over my head, I assume by Kyle, and I quickly shove it back off. 

I stand, and walk over to my closet, pulling out a pair of jeans and an old tank top. Today’s gonna be messy. Maybe a little bloody. I walk through the swinging doors and into my bathroom, turning on the sink so I can wash my face.

“Lulu?” Kyle asks. I turn to see him leaning on the doorframe, his shoulder holding one of the swinging pieces open. 

“Hmm?” I hum, wetting a washcloth and running it over my face. He doesn’t reply for a few seconds, and I look over at him while I reach for my facewash. “What?” 

“N - nothin’,” he mutters, turning around and walking out of my room entirely. I shrug. He’s probably going to go help his brother with breakfast. Kyle’s always been quiet, ever since I’ve known him. He doesn’t like to open up to anyone, even if he knows them really well. It’s a rarity that he speaks his mind, so when it does happen, you can bet your boots that it’s something important. 

I finish washing my face and change my clothes, opting for a sports bra instead of one of my normal ones, knowing today will be quite bumpy. 

I’ve been helping with the ranch since I was little, and I’ve always looked forward to these types of days. Sorting cattle, tagging and branding, it’s part of this life, and I love it. The dangerous aspect of it, the thrill of riding a horse that could suddenly trip, or turn an unexpected way and throw me, the little chills I get when I ride through the middle of a herd and the cattle brush up against my legs, it’s a rush that isn’t easily forgotten. 

I slide my boots on and make my way downstairs, the smell of bacon and eggs hitting my nose almost as soon as I walk out my bedroom door. I see Liam and Harry at the table with Kyle and Jeremy, laughing and talking with the two brothers as they all eat. 

“Hey Laura,” Liam greets when he sees me walk into the kitchen area to fill my own plate. 

“Mornin’,” I reply, picking up a piece of bacon, taking a bite. The taste is almost heavenly, and it’s crunchy, just the way I like it. I grab two more pieces and put them on my plate next to my eggs, then make my way over to the table, sitting between Harry and Kyle. 

“An then,” Jeremy says, continuing his story, “she walks right back over th’ trap she jus’ set, an’ gets ‘er foot caught innit,” that earns a laugh from all the guys sitting around the table. But when I realize that he’s talking about the first time I set my own varmint trap, I speak up. 

“Hey, that weren’t funny!” I say, trying to be serious, even though there’s a smile on my face. It was a funny incident. 

“An that’s how we found ‘er, swingin’ on th’ branch,” Jeremy says, still laughing.  

“Took ya long ‘nuff,” I sass, “Mr. My Dog Can Sniff Out Anythin’ Within Five Miles.”

“Hey, that wasn’t my fault, Blue was havin’ an off day.”

“Sure, an’ I’m a ballerina,” I reply, making all of us laugh. 

“You could probably be one though,” Liam adds once we’ve calmed down enough to talk again. I shrug. 

“Think I’d end up breakin’ more toes ‘n I can afford to.” It’s probably true. I’m not the skinniest girl there is. But there’s nothing wrong with that, I’m perfectly fine with who I am and how I look. I don’t have to look like a model to be confident with myself. 

Niall and Zayn come stumbling down the stairs, soon followed by Louis, all three of them rubbing the sleep from their eyes as they fill their plates and sit down at the table, mumbling their ‘good mornings’ to the rest of us. 

“So what’s exactly happening today?” Niall asks cautiously, as if he’s scared of the answer. 

“We’re sortin’ th’ cattle, givin’ em their shots, brandin’ th’ calves, an’ castratin’ th’ bull calves,” I reply. “Sounds like a lot, but it shouldn’t take too awful long.”

“And this is what you guys do all the time?” Zayn asks. I nod. 

“Least twice e’ry year. Iff’n yer lucky, you’ll be here fer th’ next round of it,” I reply with a grin. “Hey, you alright?” I ask Louis, who looks a little pale. He nods quickly. “Iff’n ya don’t wanna be in th’ thick of it, you can run gates with Kyle ‘r somethin’. Need a couple o’ ya ta do that.” 

After the dishes are cleared and we walk out to the stable, Jeremy and Liam saddling their horses and the rest of us walking out to the big pen, with so many gates and chutes and alleyways in it that even I’ve lost count, to sort out the cattle. 

The way that ours is set up, there’s a big pen in the back, which has two gates, one leading outside and the other leading to an alleyway, which branches off into three different chutes that connect to different pens, the middle one leading to another big pen on the opposite side of the original pen. 

The cattle start in the big pen, then are pushed into the alleyway, and depending on which gates are open or shut, they end up in one of the other pens. 

“Start with th’ cows, gotta let th’ iron heat up fer awhile,” I tell Jeremy, who nods, relaying the order to Kyle, who takes his usual spot at the top of the gates with Niall and Harry, leaving Louis and Zayn with me. 

“A’right, once we get goin’ it’s gonna go fast,” I tell them. “I’ll do most o’ th’ work, ya’ll jus’ hand me stuff.”

“So, we’re not... cutting nuts off yet?” Louis asks. I shake my head. 

“Nope. Givin’ th’ cows their shots first. Then we’ll go through th’ calves.” 

He nods, looking relieved.

“Why do they need to get shots?” Zayn asks. 

“It’s a vaccine. It keeps ‘em from gettin’ sick. Bad part ‘s that it only lasts a year,” I answer. “Speakin’ o' which,” I say, handing him the vial that contains the medicine, “hold that please. ‘ll be needin’ a refill after ‘bout three of ‘em.”

“Ya ready?” Jeremy shouts. 

“We’re good!” I yell back. A few seconds later, the first cow makes her way through the alleyway, stopping at the end of the chute, stuck in place when Kyle shuts the small gate behind her. 

I pull the cap off the needle in my hand, giving it to Louis to hold, then step up to the cow, inserting the needle into the muscle in the back of her neck. Luckily, most of the cows have been through this so many times that they just hold still, not flinching when the needle pokes through their thick skin. It’s the calves that throw fits.

I open the gate in front of her, letting her out into the large pen that we’re in, then shut the gate again, waiting for the next animal.

It goes like that for about three hours, cow comes in, give her a shot, let her go. The process is pretty simple. The only thing that isn’t simple is keeping Louis and Zayn from freaking out at the cows that come back around to see what we’re doing. Apparently they’re a bit scary when the guys aren’t on horseback. 

Once the last cow goes through, I open the gate that connects this pen to another one, and Kyle hops down from his spot on the fence to help us herd them into the next pen. 

“Jus’ walk behind ‘em, make some noise,” I instruct to Louis and Zayn. They don’t seem thrilled about it, but they do the job anyway. 

When the cows are securely in the next pen, we break for lunch, heading into the bunkhouse. 

“How many calves ya think there are?” I ask Jeremy as we set the table.

“ ‘Round forty. Should be done ‘fore dark.” 

“Good. You two goin’ home tonight?”

“Not sure. ‘ll ask Kyle what ‘e wants ta do. Might have a couple extra guests tonight.”

Zayn’s Point of View

After we eat lunch, all of us go back outside, Jeremy and Liam going back to the other side where the calves are, Niall and Harry going to run the gates, and Laura, Louis, Kyle, and I in the big pen, with Kyle on a gray horse.  

Laura picks up the metal rod thingy out of the fire that she put in earlier, pushing the end of it against a fence post, watching as it burns a mark into the wood. 

“Think it’s hot ‘nuff. Who wants ta run th’ iron?” she asks. I raise an eyebrow at her, unsure what she means. “Ain’t much to it. Jus’ stick it on ‘em an’ hold it fer awhile.”

Louis shrugs. “I’ll do it.” Laura hands him the rod, warning him not to touch the other end. 

“So that means yer helping hold ‘em down,” she tells me. Then she turns and nods at Kyle, who yells something to Jeremy, and I hear the now familiar sound of hooves coming through the alley. 

The small calf runs out of the gate, and Kyle takes off after it, twirling his rope over his head. He throws the loop, and it settles around the calf’s neck, pulling it to a stop a few feet from us. 

“Heifer,” he yells, and Laura nods.

She jogs over, then leans over the calf’s back, grabbing ahold of a front leg and a back leg on the side she’s on. Then she pulls the calf over, laying it on it’s side on the ground. 

“Louis,” she calls. He walks over, and I follow, not quite sure what to do. She looks up at me, telling me to grab a leg and lean over the calf’s shoulder. 

“Put it right there,” she tells Louis, pointing with her elbow to the calf’s hind end. “Hold it fer a count of twenty.” 

“Okay,” he says, then sticks the end of the rod onto the calf. Almost immediately there’s a hissing sound, and smoke. What the - ? 

“Burns th’ hair off,” Laura explains as we struggle to hold down the now thrashing calf. 

The smell of burning hair is so intense I can feel my eyes watering, and I feel bad for the poor calf. 

“Twenty!” Laura shouts. Louis pulls the rod away, leaving a mark on the calf in the shape of the letter R with a curved line underneath it.  “Looks good. Nice job,” she says. 

Then she pulls what looks like a pair of pliers from her back pocket, handing them to Kyle, who stick something white on the inside of the clampy part, then sticks it onto the calf’s ear, pulling the handles together and clamping it down. 

The calf, who had just begun to settle down, starts struggling against us again, trying to get free. There’s a click sound, then Kyle loosens the pliers, leaving the white things stuck in the calf’s ear, kind of like an earring. 

“One more thing,” Laura says, giving the calf a shot of the vaccine. As soon as she pulls the needle out, Kyle pulls the rope over the calf’s head. “A’right, let ‘er up.”

I let go, and the calf stands, shaking off the dust before trotting over to the fence. 

“Bring out th’ next’n,” Laura says. Kyle nods, then rides over to the gate.

“Doesn’t that hurt them? Burning their hair off?” Louis asks. 

“Not too bad. Iff’n ya hold it fer too long, then it hurts. But it’s just like puttin’ somethin’ really warm next ta yer skin,” Laura answers, putting the pliers back in her pocket. 

“What’s the white thing you put in it’s ear?” I ask. 

“RFID Tag. All cattle gotta have ‘em, it’s a law. Each one’s got a different set o’ numbers on it, so it helps keep us from mixin’ th calves up iff’n we take ‘em somewhere.” 

“What’s the RFID thing mean?” Louis asks.

“Radio-Frequency Identification.”

Then the next calf comes out, and we start the whole thing all over again.The next few calves are the same, Kyle catches it, Laura lays it out, Louis brands it, it gets tagged, gets a vaccine, and then we let it go. Until…

“Bull,” Kyle yells when he catches the next one. 

“A’right!” Laura cheers, grabbing what looks like another pair of pliers and walks over to the calf, laying it on it’s side and holding it down, just like the others. It gets branded, an ear tag is put in it’s ear, and it gets a shot. 

But that’s not the end. 

“Hold ‘is leg up,” Laura tells Louis, motioning toward the calf’s back leg, Louis grabs ahold of it, pulling it up away from the other. Laura grabs the plier things and sits on top of the calf, one leg on either side of it. She just reaches down in between it’s back legs and I can’t see what she’s doing, but judging from the look on Louis’ face, it must be scary. The look of horror on his face tells it all. The calf moos loudly, then Laura climbs off and tells us to let it go. 

When the calf stands, it’s almost like it doesn’t want to move at first, but it walks away after a little, slowly making his way over to the fence. 

“Bloody Hell, what did you do?” Louis asks.

“Whaddya mean?” Laura asks, telling Kyle to go get another one. 

“You just -” 

“Grabbed a handful o’ balls?” Laura asks sassily, walking over and laying the next calf down on it’s side. Wait, what? “That’s how ya do it.” She says, like it’s nothing. “Why, does that bother ya?” 

“No,” Louis shoots back as he walks over, holding the hot iron to the calf. “Why would something like that bother me?” he sasses. 

Laura gives him a look, then sits on the calf again. “Yer gonna have ta hold  a leg again,” she tells him. He waits a few seconds, then pulls the iron rod away, setting it on the ground. Then he grips the calf’s leg, pulling it up a bit to give Laura more room to work. 

“Holy shit, this thing’s huge,” I hear Laura mutter. 

“That’s what she said,” Louis says. Laura shakes her head. 

“Kyle, get th’ bucket!” she yells. 

“What? Why?” Louis asks. “Can’t you just do this one like the last one?”

Laura shakes her head again. “Nope. Too big. Gotta cut ‘em out.”

I almost choke. “What?”

Laura looks back at me. “Gotta cut ‘em off. They’re too big fer th’ band ta fit. This gets a ‘lil bloody, so iff’n yer squeamish, better tell me now.” 

Louis and I look at each other, each daring the other to chicken out. When Kyle comes back a couple moments later with a bucket full of a copper colored liquid and yet another plier looking thing, neither of us have said anything, though I can tell he’s just as scared as I am. 

“Last chance,” Laura warns. “Iff’n yer gonna puke, don’t aim it toward me.” 

Then she’s doing something, and Louis almost immediately looks away, his face pale. The calf begins to struggle again, then moos loudly. Laura puts the plier thingys back in the bucket, then puts a tag in the calf’s ear and gives it a shot. 

“A’right, let ‘im up.”

The calf gets up, wobbling a little before walking over to the other calves, leaving a small pool of blood behind. 

“Ya a’right?” Laura asks Louis. “You need ta sit down ‘r somethin’?” 

Louis shakes his head, his face paler than usual. “No, I just - how does that not bother you?”

“I been doin’ this fer years. ’M used to it,” Laura replies. “You sure yer a’right?” 

“Yeah, just keep going, I’m fine,” Louis says. 

Laura nods to Kyle, and he rides over, yelling for another calf.

The next few are heifers, so we don’t have to worry about any more blood. 

Then one comes out, looking thicker boned than the others. When Kyle says it’s a bull, I inwardly groan. 

“We’re keepin’ thiss’n,” Laura says, walking over and laying it down. The calf gets a shot, it gets branded, and a tag is put into it’s ear. Then Laura tells us to let it up, and Kyle leads it over to an different pen. 

“Why didn’t you… you know..?” I ask. 

“That’ns a nice one. Might make some nice calves,” she replies. 

“Wait, what?” Louis asks. 

“Gonna breed that’n,” Laura answers. “Got a nice build, good ‘n sturdy. Might make some nice calves. Gotta find th’ right heifer though.”

“So wait - that one gets to keep his balls?”

“Yessir. Why, ‘s there somethin’ weird bout that?”

“Are you keeping it… like that, for any other reason?” Louis asks.

“Intact? Not really. Meat won’t be any good after awhile, an’ ya can’t milk a bull.”

“So you’re keeping it, and all it does is… have sex?”

“Not all th’ time, but yeah, that’s pretty much it. Sounds weird when ya put it that way,” Laura answers. 

“That sounds… pretty sweet,” Louis says. 

“That’ns prolly th’ only one that’ll get that lucky. Don’t keep most of ‘em intact. Jus’ th’ nice lookin’ ones.”

Louis’ Point of View

After we finish with all the calves, feed the horses, and eat supper, it’s dark outside. 

We all sit down on the couches, and Laura goes up to her room again with Jeremy and Kyle, closing the door. 

“My arms are so sore,” Harry complains, “those gates are hard to swing open and closed.”

“You think your job was hard, I had to move all the cows through the gates,” Liam says.

“Well, I think we had the worst job of all,” I say, throwing my arm over Zayn’s shoulders. He nods, putting on a scared face. 

“What did you have to do that was worse than swinging heavy gates all day?”

“We had to hold the calves while their balls got cut off,” Zayn says, shuddering.

The other lads’ eyes widen. 

“What?” Niall asks in shock. “Laura made you watch that?”

“Well, we didn’t have to watch, but it’s like one of those things that’s  _so_  horrible you  _can’t_  look away,” I answer.

“Scarred me for life,” Zayn adds. 

“Oh, you didn’t even get the worst part of it,” I tease. 

“What happened?” Harry asks. 

“I was just standing there, and she tells me to hold it’s leg up. So I’m like, okay. no big deal. She like, full on grabs it, and puts this rubber band thing around it. This thing’s like, tight enough to cut off circulation,” I tell them.

“So she’s not shy,” Harry laughs. 

I shake my head. “No, she’s not.”

"So what do you think they're doing up there?" Niall asks, nodding toward Laura's room. 

"Not a clue."


	16. Chapter 16

Laura’s Point of View

“So, what do you really think of ‘em?” Jeremy asks. 

“No, I don’t wanna answer that’n!” I complain, swatting his hand away from my bowl of chocolate chips. Kyle fell asleep a long time ago, sprawled out on top of the blankets on my bed. There’s nothing that’ll wake him up until he’s good and ready, so we don’t have to worry about being too loud.

“C’mon, Lulu! Is it that bad? Do I need ta tell yer father?” he teases.

“No, it ain’t nothin’ like that!” I exclaim. 

He gives me a look. He knows me better than that.

“A’right, fine. They look nice. But they’re skinny.”

“What?” he asks, confused.

I sigh, not wanting to explain. A knock on the door interrupts us.

“Who is it?” I ask.

“It’s us,” I hear Harry’s voice say. “Can we come in?”

“Sure,” I call. I turn to Jeremy. “Behave.” He rolls his eyes.

The door opens, and in walk all five of them. 

“Pop a squat,” Jeremy says, inviting them to come sit with us. “We was jus’ playin’ twenty questions.” I give him another look. We were just asking questions, not playing a literal game.

“Can we join?” Niall asks as he sits down next to me. I can almost  _taste_  the cologne rolling off of these guys, and have to hold back a cough. I shrug.

“Iff’n ya want.”

 “So Lulu, whaddya mean by skinny?” Jeremy asks, continuing our conversation. 

I sigh. “They need ta eat more, that’s all I meant.”

“You sure?” I nod. 

“Wait, what are you talking about?” Harry asks. 

“I asked Laura what she thought bout ya’ll an’ she said you was skinny,” Jeremy clarifies. 

“What?” Louis asks. I groan. 

“I’s jus’ sayin’ that they could do with eatin’ a few cheeseburgers, there ain’t no need ta make a big deal outta it. Don’t want ‘em dyin’ o starvation.”

“Laura likes ‘er men big,” Jeremy says, a wicked grin on his face. I throw a chocolate chip at him, hitting him in the nose.

“Really?” Harry asks. I roll my eyes, glaring at Jeremy. 

I shrug. “I guess. I like a guy with meat on 'is bones.”

“Sure…” Jeremy says.

“Don’t start,” I warn him. The other guys seem amused by our banter, watching us carefully. 

“Well what ‘bout Jake? He’s skinny,” Jeremy asks.

“That’s different, leave ‘im outta this. I was stupid then.”

“Wait, Jake? Like, Jake Schmidt?” Liam asks, making the connection. 

“Yep. Lulu dated ‘im. And ‘is brother.”

“Ya make me sound like a whore when ya say it like that,” I say.

“How’d you say it then?” he asks. 

“I dated ‘im, then a few years later I dated ‘is brother. I asked ‘im first, ‘e said it ‘as fine with ‘im,” I explain. “Wasn’t like I dated ‘im ‘n then went straight to ‘is brother.” 

“More like two years and three guys later,” Jeremy mutters. 

“Well, thank you fer memorizin’ all th’ guys I dated. Wouldja like a cookie ‘r a small parade?”

He just laughs, waving me off, because he knows that I’m not really mad, I’m just joking. 

“So, who else have you dated that we know?” Louis asks. I inwardly groan. Now I’m the center of attention, and I don’t want to be. They’re never gonna let this one go. 

“Luke Schultz, ‘e’s the solo guy with th’ guitar, an’ th’ two Schmidts. Prolly won’t get to see any o' th’ others. Wyatt an’ Alan ain’t round no more, an’ I ain’t seen Paul fer couple years.”

“Alan, now ‘e was huge,” Jeremy says.

“What?” Niall asks.

“ ‘E was a big brute, good help with balin’ hay,” I say with a smile. “But real sweet too.”

“What happened with him?” Harry asks. I laugh harshly.

“Cheated. Guess ‘e didn’t want a woman who’d cook ‘is meals an’ wash ‘is laundry. Went fer some dumb blonde who couldn’t remember ‘er own name ‘thout bein’ told.” 

“Wow. That’s stupid,” Zayn says, speaking up for the first time since he sat down. 

“That’s what I said,” Jeremy agrees. “Anyone who gives that up would be-”

“A’right, I know ‘m amazin’, but can we not talk ‘bout me?” I say, trying to change the subject. I’m okay if one or two people are focused on me, but when there’s more than three people watching me, I start to get paranoid. Not sure why, I’ve always been that way. I don’t like crowds either. 

“But you’re so interesting,” Harry tries. 

“A’right, ask away. Whatever ya want,” I say, throwing a handful of chocolate chips in my mouth. “Ya got twenty questions.” 

“Turn ons?” Louis asks. And there we go, now I know what he thinks about all the time. 

“Can we not have th’ sex talk with ‘im here? Makes it awkward…” I groan, motioning toward Jeremy. 

“Come on Laura, I know most ‘o this stuff a’ready anyway,” Jeremy teases. 

I roll my eyes. “Fine.” I put my finger on my chin, thinking for a second. What do I like? “I don’t even know. I like a guy with a nice truck. No Chevys though.” 

“What? You pick guys based on what they drive?” Niall asks, confused.

“Hey, ya know what they say, big truck, big dick.”

“I thought it was th’ other way ‘round…” Jeremy says. 

“I’ve proven it ta be my way. Done research,” I sass. 

“You mean you-” Harry starts.

“God no, I ain’t no whore. I asked ‘round. Asked th’ girlfriends. They tell th’ truth.”

“Anything else?” Louis asks. 

“I like me some Josh Turner,” I reply, biting my lip. 

“Do you like the way he looks or -”

“That ain’t all o’ it,” I say, “ ‘e does this thing with ‘is voice, an’ it’s jus’...” I shudder, just thinking about it gets me going. 

“D’ya need ta excuse yerself?” Jeremy asks. 

“Not yet,” I joke, “best get to talkin’ bout somethin’ else though.” 

“What else do you like?” Liam asks.

“Oh God,” I groan. “I like me a good pair o’ shoulders.” 

“Shoulders? Thats it?” Harry asks.

“Iff’n ya get me started, I ain’t gonna stop. Best not get too far inta that,” I say. 

“What kind of movies do you like to watch?” Niall asks. 

I snort. “I ain’t never got time ta watch movies no more. But I like a good western. S’pecially one with Sam Elliot ‘r Tom Selleck.”

“Don’t get her started on them,” Jeremy says, “that’s a talk that lasts fer days.”

“An’ Logan Lerman, oh my God,” I add, popping another handful of chocolate chips into my mouth. 

“Okay then,” Louis starts, “How about turn offs?”

“That’s probly fer th’ best,” Jeremy mutters. 

“A’right…” I warn. “I hate it when veins stick outta th’ guy’s arms, jus-” I shiver. “Ick. An’ when they chew with their mouth open, an’ iff’n they don’t got no manners, or iff’n they chew tobacco, ‘r smoke, tatoos’re a’right, but not tons of ‘em. That gets weird. An’ I hate when people touch my feet.”

“Is that all?” Niall asks.

I shrug. “I ain’t too picky most o’ th’ time.” 

"Music?" Liam asks.

"I listen to 'most anythin', 'cept rap. Country's my favorite though." 

“Any tattoos?” Harry asks.

“That’s fer me ta know an’ you ta find out,” I say. 

Liam’s Point of View

It is hard to get her to talk about herself, Paul wasn’t lying. She’s telling us the bare minimum, nothing else unless we press for more. We’ve gone through ten questions already, and I really don’t know much more about her than I did before. Jeremy’s fallen asleep, leaning on Laura’s shoulder. 

Now we’ve gotten back around to the sex questions, I’m not sure how the conversation got here, but it’s kind of entertaining.

“So what was it like?” Niall asks, wanting to know about her first time. “Was it bad, or what?”

“I ain’t got nothin’ ta compare it to. I dunno. A’most got a concussion though.”

“Why? Did he hit you or something?” I ask. That would be awful.

“Was it that rough?” Harry asks with a smirk. Laura shakes her head.

“Naw, we’d jus’ come back from droppin’ off a trailer at th’ stockyards, an’ th’ truck bed wasn’t exactly empty. I hit my head on that hitch so many times,” she explains. 

“Wait, you just... _did it..._  out in the open?” Louis asks, shocked. “Where people could see you?” 

“Ew, no, I ain’t that kinky,” Laura says, wrinkling her nose.”We pulled off th’ road, there weren’t nothin’ but field fer miles. Don’t recommend it though. Not too comfy.”

“So can we come watch you play volleyball sometime?” Harry asks, changing the subject.

“Iff’n ya want, I guess. I’ll ask coach iff’n ya can come watch us practice ‘r somethin’.”

“What exactly do you do?” Zayn asks. 

“I block, I serve, an’ I hit. It don’t sound too awful interestin’, but it’s perdy fun.”

“What’s that mean?” Niall asks.

“I block th’ hits that come over th’ net, an’ I hit th” ball over th’ net,” she clarifies. “It’s easier ta understand iff’n ya watch it.”

Then she turns toward the radio, which has been playing quiet music so far, and her eyes get huge, and she scrambles over to it to turn it up. 

“I love this song!” she exclaims.

_Wild thing_

_You make my heart sing_

_You make everything groovy_

_Come on, wild thing_

She starts humming along to the song as she sits back in her spot, picking Jeremy’s head off of the floor and letting him lay on her leg. He miraculously didn’t wake up when she moved and let his head fall onto the rug, but when she starts absentmindedly running her fingers through his short hair, he stirs, turning to nuzzle his face into her stomach and wrapping an arm around her. She just shakes her head with a fond smile. 

“He’s a cuddler,” she mutters. 

“So how long have you two known each other?” I ask. 

“It seems like it’s been ferever,” she says, “I think it was ‘bout three ‘r four years ago. Don’t quote me on that. I was starin’ at ‘is truck, cause ‘e had a nic’n back then, an’ ‘e called me out on it. We kinda jus’ started hangin’ out, an’ Kyle joined in after awhile.” She shrugs. “That’s ‘bout it.”

“And you’re just friends?”

She nods. “They’re like brothers. Big huge brothers.”

Jeremy stirs again, mumbling in his sleep as he kicks his leg out. “Lori…”

Laura sighs, running her fingers through his hair again, and he calms down.

“Damn girlfriend,” she murmurs.

“What’s wrong with his girlfriend? She seems perfectly nice to me,” Niall mutters.

“She’s a -” Laura starts, then looks down at Jeremy to make sure he’s really asleep. “She’s a little bitch, that’s what’s wrong. She says she don’t want ‘im ta spend no money on ‘er, then she whines when ‘e don’t take ‘er out ta dinner ‘r nothin. ‘E stayed up all night th’ day a’fore their anniversary lookin’ up how ta make a meal she said she liked, then spent all day makin’ it, an’ th’ second she seen it, she wrinkled up that damn little pig nose ‘o hers and said she hated that stuff, why didn’t ‘e jus’ take ‘er out fer dinner like she wanted, ‘stead o’ spendin’ all that time in th’ kitchen.”

Wow. That doesn’t sound very nice.

“Iff’n a guy spends that much time in th’ kitchen, makin’ ya a meal, ya eat it, iff’n ya like it ‘r not,” Laura mutters. 

“So do you like stuff like that?” Zayn asks. 

“Don’t havta be that fancy, but I appreciate little things, like washin’ th’ dishes an’ cleanin’.” 

There’s a quiet moment, until Harry speaks up.

“Where are you gonna sleep?” Yeah, where is she going to sleep? Kyle is sprawled out on her bed, not leaving any extra room at all.

“Tonight? Prolly on th’ floor right here,” Laura answers, “It’s pretty comfy. This rug’s perdy soft.”

“Wait - is this a bear?” Louis exclaims, looking around the dark, furry rug to find the four large paws that stick out of it. 

“Yessir. Killed an’ skinned it myself,” she replies proudly. 

“So wait - those deer on the wall, all those antlers… where’d they come from?”

“Shot all them deer myself.” I feel my jaw drop for a second. 

“How?” 

“I like goin’ huntin’, An’ I like venison,” she answers. 

“Do you hunt often?” She nods.

“More in th’ winter than th’ summer. I’ll prolly end up in th’ tree stand sometime later this month.” 

“Can we go?” Zayn asks curiously.

“Maybe. Ya'll got two left. Make 'em good," she says.

“Are your boobs real?” Harry asks. 

“Why in  _hell_  would you ask somethin’ like that?” she asks, her eyes a little wide. 

“You said to make them good questions, and I’m curious,” he shoots back, his eyes darting from her face down to her chest and back up again.. Who wouldn’t be? They’re a bit… big. 

She blinks, then laughs, a smirk on her face. “Yeah, they’re real,” she replies. Then she points accusingly at Louis, who’s about to say something. “An’ no, ya ain’t gettin’ no proof, I don’t strip fer jus’ anyone,” she says sternly.

Louis laughs, snapping his fingers. “Darn.”

“A’right, one more, then ‘m goin’ ta bed,” she says, stretching her arms above her head. 

“Why don’t you like talking about kids?” Louis blurts. What does that have to do with anything?

Laura looks at him, her eyebrows furrowed. “Whaddya mean?”

“Saturday, Liam asked how many kids you wanted and you got all sad. How come?”

Laura falls silent, looking down at Jeremy’s sleeping face in her lap. Good going Louis, you made her mad. She shakes her head. 

“Mmm-mm. Nope. Gimme another one.” 

Louis’ Point of View

I huff as I walk out of Laura’s room with the rest of the lads. Why wouldn’t she answer my question? I don’t see a reason why she couldn’t. It’s just a simple question. Now I really want to know. 

“What was that?” Niall asks. 

“What?” 

“You made her mad! What are you thinking?” Harry exclaims quietly. 

“Yeah, now she’s gonna be grumpy tomorrow,” Liam says.

“She’s gonna crack the whip,” Zayn adds seriously.

I stop walking and turn around. “She’s gonna  _what_?” I ask with a smirk.

“Crack the whip? You know…” he makes a face as he realizes what that sounded like, “Aw, come on, I didn’t-”

“She’s gonna crack the whip!” Harry exclaims, making a motion like he’s whipping Liam. “Whachoo!” We all start laughing, my apparently absurd question completely forgotten. 

“God, you guys make everything sex related,” Niall whines, going into his room and shutting the door. 

“Well on that note, I’m going to bed,” Liam says, going into his room. 

“Night lads,” I say.

The next morning after the two Dillons leave, Laura is a little grumpier, but she says it's because Jeremy wouldn't quit moving around and waking her up. Whatever the reason, she does seem to be moody. 

When she walks out of the stable with a huge bullwhip, the five of us immediately break into a round of snickering, remembering Zayn's slip up last night. Laura, not being in on the joke, doesn't find anything funny today, and just tells us to get on our horses, that we're gonna move the cattle we sorted yesterday to the pasture.

We do as she says, Harry and Zayn nearly falling out of their saddles when Laura literally cracks the whip to get the cattle moving. 

We put most of the cattle into the big pastures that we took them out of, the calves went into their own pen closer to the main part of the ranch so Laura can keep an eye on which ones are growing better than the others. 

Then we put some of them into another pen by themselves, closest to the barn. 

“Why are these ones all mixed up?” Liam asks. “Didn’t we just sort them all yesterday?”

“These’ns ‘re goin’ ta th’ stockyards tammara,” Laura answers as she closes the gate. “Gonna sell ‘em.”

“Why?” I ask. 

“That’s how we make th’ money,” she replies. “Sell th’ cattle that ain’t gonna make good calves, use th’ money ta buy more.” 

After we finish, we head inside for lunch, and Laura makes us grilled cheese. Then we just lay around on the couches for a while.

“So, ya’ll wanna head ta town?” Laura asks. 

“What for?” Harry asks. 

“Need more feed fer th’ horses, an’ I need some new jeans. Thought maybe you’d want some clothes ‘r somethin’.”

“I’ll go,” Zayn says. “I tore a hole in my last pair of jeans this morning.”

“I guess we’ll go too,” Liam adds, speaking for himself and Niall.

“I suppose I’ll go too,” Harry says, leaving just me.

“And yer comin’ too,” Laura says to me. 

“What? Why?” 

“ ‘Cause I ain’t leavin' you home 'lone agin after what happened last time,” she says with a stern tone, reffering to when I put cups of water all over the floor in her room. 

“Alright, I’ll go too.”

“Good.”


	17. Chapter 17

Laura’s Point of View

The next day, after an early breakfast, we load the cattle into the trailer and take off down the road. I gave them the option to stay home, but they all climbed into the truck. It may have had something to do with the fact that I said whoever stayed had to clean out the horse stalls. 

“So how far is this place we’re going to?” Liam asks. 

“Not too far. Only ‘bout an hour.” It doesn’t take as long to get to the stockyards as it does to get to town. The drive always seems to take longer though, probably because I drive slower when I’m hauling animals. I don’t like to go super fast, just in case I have to stop in a hurry. 

It seems to take even longer today with the constant ‘are we there yet’ coming from the backseat. Good Lord boy, learn some patience!

When we finally get there, it’s around nine. I park the truck around back, where the many chutes and pens that they use to sort the animals are. 

“Wait here fer a minute, I’ll be right back,” I say, grabbing my hat and climbing out of the truck. I walk over to the white door in the middle of the wall, opening it and walking into the office. The smell of animals and leather polish hits my nose, and I take a deep breath of the familiar scent.

“Laura Lynn! I ain’t seen you since Sunday!” the lady behind the desk greets with a smile. 

“Mornin’ Sheila,” I greet, throwing a smile to Jeremy’s mother. 

“How many head you bringin’ in today?” she asks, getting down to business. 

“Twenty. Twelve heifers and eight steers,” I tell her, watching as she writes the information down on the card before handing it to me to fill the rest out. 

“So how’ve ya been?” I ask.

“Pretty good. Hanna hasn’t stopped talkin’ ‘bout gettin’ ta ride the pony when she went ta yer house the other day. She can’t wait to come over again,” she replies. “How’re you?”

“ ‘m a’right. Got some new hands at th’ ranch. Showin’ ‘em th’ ropes.”

“Oh?” she asks, “what are they like?” I shrug, handing the card back to her.

“They’re a’right I s’pose. Easy on th’ eyes.”

“Laura!” I hear a deep voice call. 

“But they ain’t too patient,” I tell Sheila before turning around to face Harry. “What?”

“Why are you taking so long?”

“I’m talkin’ ta my friend, Harry. Jus’ a few minutes.” He groans, then turns around to go back to the truck. 

“Was that..?” I nod. “Are they all like that?” she asks curiously.

“Naw. He’s usually th’ most polite. They prolly sent ‘im cause they think ‘e’s my favorite. They’re all British though. ‘Cept th’ one that’s Irish.” 

“That’s not too bad. They yer age?” I nod. 

“Right in there. I prolly oughta get back ‘fore they set somethin’ on fire. It’s nice talkin’ to ya,” I say, grabbing the card that she hands me and walking out the door. 

“Finally!” Louis exclaims when I walk out the door. 

“I was in there fer three minutes. You can’t wait that long?” I scold. 

“We’re sorry Laura. We got bored,” Niall says, looking down at the ground. 

“It’s a’right this time. Jus’ try an’ be a lil more patient.” 

I walk over to the main gate, and am greeted by a familiar face. 

“Laura!” Luke says with a smile. “Didn’t expect ya here yet.”

“Got an early start,” I say, handing him the card. He looks it over, then nods.

“A’right, back yer trailer up. D’ya want help?” he asks with a smirk. 

“You know damn well I can back it up jus’ fine,” I shoot back with a smile, heading back to my truck. 

I hop into the driver’s seat, then start the truck, maneuvering it so that the trailer door opens right at the gate to let the cattle out. Then I open the door, giving the cattle a way out so that they can go into the chutes. When they don’t move, I get up into the trailer myself.

Niall’s Point of View

Laura steps into the trailer without a second’s hesitation once she sees that the cows aren’t going anywhere. How can she do that? 

Let me make this a little easier to understand. Every single one of those cows has to weigh over a thousand pounds, and Laura’s maybe one thirty. Those things are huge, and she’s not. She could get crushed in there!

“What are you doing?” I ask frantically. 

“Movin’ ‘em out,” she replies calmly, sliding along the wall to get behind them. “Ya wanna help?”

I swallow. With Laura, it always seems like more of an order than a suggestion. “I guess…” and join her and the cattle in the trailer. I can feel them moving against me, trying to squash me against the wall. 

“Jus’ keep movin’, she says, suddenly right next to me. “Iff’n one gets too close, punch ‘im in th’ nose. That us’lly gets ‘em ta leave ya ‘lone.” 

I continue weaving through the warm cattle, nearly tripping a couple times over what seems to be nothing when I look back, until both of us are at the front of the trailer.

“Now what?” I ask. 

“Make some noise,” she replies. She whistles loudly, and the cattle start moving, mooing loudly. 

“Go on, get outta here!” she shouts. I join her, shouting random things to keep them moving. 

Once they’re all out of the trailer, Laura and I hop out, shutting the large metal door and latching it. 

“What’s the price fer ‘em?” Luke asks. 

“Fifteen hundred a head,” Laura replies. 

“What? No way,” he replies, a scowl on his face. 

“Yessir, that’s th' market price.”

“No it ain’t.” 

“Yes it is. Looked it up this mornin’,” Laura insists.

“No it ain’t. Market price is one thousand a head,” he argues.

“Go ask Sheila,” Laura challenges. 

“I will. Yer wrong,” Luke says stubbornly. 

“Go on then, go ask.” 

He walks off, his fists clenched, to go prove Laura wrong. Laura, however, is standing there with a smirk on her face. 

“He’s gonna come back all mad,” she says. 

“How come?” I ask.

“Cause he’s wrong. He hates bein’ wrong.” 

Sure enough, about two minutes later, Luke comes back, a check in his hand and a scowl on his face. 

“An’  _who’s_  right this time?” Laura asks, faking innocence. 

“Don’t start,” he says grumpily, handing her the check and walking away, going back to the maze of metal gates and pens. Laura turns, walking back to her truck with a smirk. 

“C’mon, we’re done fer today,” she calls, and we all pile into the truck, the radio blaring as we drive away. 

“Ya’ll want lunch now, ‘r when we get back?” she asks. “There’s a diner, couple miles down th’ road iff’n ya wanna eat now.”

“Can we eat now?” I ask, my stomach growling. “Please?”

“Sure,” she says with a smile, putting on her turn signal and moving into the left turn lane.

"So why is the price such a big deal?" Harry asks. 'Why does it matter how much you get paid per cow?"

"Cause we need e'ry penny we can get. Cattle industry ain't doin' too good. Lots o' rancher's goin' under cause th' market ain't what it used ta be," Laura explains. "Th' fewer cattlemen that are left, th' more cattle each one of 'em  has ta raise ta keep th' stores stocked an' th' people fed."

"Why is the industry 'going under'?" I ask.

"Cause o' all th' suburbs that're gettin' spread out inta th' farmland, an' them PETA people that keep protestin' 'gainst keepin' animals inside fences, 'nstead o' lettin' 'em run free."

"What's wrong with letting them go wherever?" Louis asks. 

"Without somethin' ta keep 'em from going e'rywhere, they'd end up in th' road more off'n than not. They'd get hit by cars an' shit. It ain't jus' fer their safety that we keep 'em inside th' fences, it's fer our safety too. An' they don't grow as well iff'n they're jus' walkin' e'rywhere ta get somethin' ta eat. They'd work off all th' grass they ate 'fore they could grow any muscle from it," she replies.

After a couple minutes, she pulls into the parking lot of a small building, the sign reading  _City Limits Diner._

“Howdy ya’ll, how many in yer party?” the hostess asks with a smile when we walk in.

“Six,” Laura answers, and the blonde girl nods, grabbing a stack of menus and gesturing for us to follow her. She leads us to a corner booth, and we slide into the bench seat around the table, Laura in the middle. 

“Your server’ll be with ya in a minute,” the hostess says, then walks back to the front after handing us our menus.

“ ‘M payin’,” Laura says. All five of us look up, ready to protest, but she holds up one finger. “I drove ya’ll here, I’ll pay.”

“So if we drive can we buy you lunch?” Liam asks. 

“Yeah. Iff’n ya can find ‘nother car ta drive,” she replies, looking at her menu. 

“Can’t we just drive your truck?” Harry asks. 

“Nope.”

“Why not?” I ask. 

“I don’t let nobody but me drive my truck. ‘M picky like that.” 

“Hey Laura! What’re you doin’ here this early in the mornin’?” a familiar voice says, and I feel my heart skip a couple beats.  

“Hey Annie,” Laura replies. “Jus’ took a trailer full ta th’ stockyards. Wanted somethin’ ta eat.”

“An’ you just  _happened_  to bring all these guys with ya?” Ann asks, raising an eyebrow at Laura before smiling at me. “Hey Niall.”

“Hey,” I reply, smiling. I can feel my face getting redder the longer she looks at me. 

“So, have ya’ll decided what ya want?” she asks suddenly, blinking quickly and looking at the rest of the people sitting around the table. 

“I’ll have pancakes an’ bacon,” Laura says. 

“You want syrup?” Ann asks, writing down the order. 

“Two o’ them little things, please,” Laura replies. 

The rest of the lads order, and I frantically search the menu, trying to decide what I want. If I wasn’t so distracted this might be an easy choice. 

“An’ what do you want, sugar?” Ann asks, turning to me.

“Um…” I stutter, unable to make a decision. “I don’t know. What do you like?”

The question seems to catch her off guard, and she pauses for a moment before collecting her thoughts and replying, “the spaghetti’s always been my favorite outta what we serve here.” 

“I’ll have that then,” I tell her.She nods, writing it down before taking our menus. 

“Your food’ll be out inna few minutes,” she says, throwing one more smile at me before walking back to the kitchen.

“Smooth, Ni,” Louis says, nudging my arm with his elbow.

“What?” I ask, my blush returning.

“I don’t know what I want, what do  _you_  like?” Harry imitates, acting as if he’s me and Laura is Ann. 

“I dunno  _sugar_ , maybe ya should share yer spaghetti with me,” Laura says, playing along. 

“I get it, stop,” I laugh. 

When Ann comes back with our food, there’s mention of me sharing my plate with her, but she politely declines, saying her lunch break isn’t for another three hours and she has to keep working. I’m disappointed, but shoot her a smile as she walks away. 

“So what else are we doing today?” Liam asks as we climb back into the truck, stomachs full and feeling lazy. 

“Don’t think there’s anythin’ else left fer today. There’s another one o’ them barn dances tonight iff’n ya’ll wanna go,” Laura replies. 

Harry’s Point of View

We climb out of Laura’s truck once she parks by the big red barn at the Wilder’s house, following her inside. We've all cleaned up a bit, putting on clean clothes that don’t smell like cow poop, and fixing our hair. Laura still has her hair in a braid, much like the one she had plaited it into this morning, and the lads and I have gelled our hair into almost matching quiffs. 

Laura sets her case behind the stage, then practically drags us to the dance floor, where the loud music is best heard and everyone else is jumping around. She starts dancing to the song. Another line dance that we don’t know. Why are there so many of these out here?

_If it hadn't been for cotton-eye joe_

_I'd been married long time ago_

_Where did you come from. Where did you go?_

_Where did you come from cotton-eye joe?_

Ann’s pulled Niall into the crowd, and after a few minutes Erica finds Liam, and they’re gone too. Before too long, Laura notices the remaining three of us just standing there, and drops out of line to show us the dance. There’s a lot of jumping in this one. 

Jump to the right twice, then to the left twice, then back twice, then forward, clapping your hands under your leg as you turn, then doing the whole thing over again.

Pretty soon we’re dancing and having fun like last time, and Laura’s singing along loudly with the song. 

_He came to town like a midwinter storm_

_He rode through the fields so h_ _andsome and strong_

_His eyes was his tools and his smile was his gun_

_But all he had come for was having some fun_

She kicks her leg up high every time she turns, her foot going above her head each time. By the time the song is over, she’s all sweaty and panting, but she looks so happy, like she’s just had the time of her life. 

“Howdy ya’ll!” a high pitched, girly voice says into the microphone. Oh no, it’s these girls again. Don’t get me wrong, they’re pretty, and they seem nice, but  _all_  they sing is Taylor Swift, and I  _hate_  those songs. 

As they start to sing along to a prerecorded track, Laura makes a face, as if she too can’t stand the musical torture. 

“Well, I’m gonna go climb a tree. You wanna join?” she asks randomly. I shrug. I’ve got nothing better to do. 

We walk outside, toward a huge oak tree, and once we’re under it, Laura hops right up, wrapping her arms around a branch and swinging her legs up so she can grab another branch. 

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Climbin’ a tree, what’s it look like?” she sasses with a smile. “You comin’?”

“I didn’t think you were actually going to go climb a tree,” I reply, reaching above my head to grasp ahold of a branch and pull myself up. I climb higher and higher, following Laura until we’re up high enough to see over the tops of the few buildings that are around. I look out through a break in the branches, and pause for a moment.

“Whoah.” 

The sun is setting over the horizon, close to disappearing, the last few rays of it’s light casting a golden glow over the fields and trees. The sky is a mixture of copper and gold hues, fading out to blues and purples farther away from the sun. 

“Perdy, ain’t it?” Laura asks, leaning on a branch near me. 

“Yeah. I mean, wow.” I can't find words to describe the beauty of the sky’s colors. 

“One o' th’ best parts o’ livin’ out here. Sunsets’re always real nice. Sky seems like it goes on ferever, till th’ sun finds th’ end o’ it and hides fer th’ night,” she says, her tone one of awe.

We sit there for a little while, just watching the sun go down, until it’s almost too dark out to see as we climb down out of the tree. 

“There ya are!” Jeremy says once he spots Laura walking back into the barn. 

“Here I am,” she says. Jeremy look between the two of us, a grin growing on his face. “No,” Laura says, poking him in the chest with her finger, “no, no, no, no, no, no.”

“A’right, a’right,” he laughs, throwing his hands up. “We play after this song. Be there ‘fore we start.” Then he walks away, shaking his head and laughing to himself.

“Sorry ‘bout ‘im, ‘e thinks ‘e’s funny,” Laura says, rolling her eyes. 

"It’s alright," I reply. 

“S’pose I oughta get goin’,” she says, waving and walking away. I wave back, then go find the other lads and sit with them. 

Before long, Laura, Jeremy and Kyle are strumming their guitars and singing, the song an older sounding one. Laura nods her head to the beat, her fingers moving deftly across the guitar frets to strum the chords as she leans over to the microphone.

_**I'm feelin' like Tonto, ridin' a Pinto,** _

_**Tryin' to chase the Lone Ranger down.** _

_**I'm a little unravelled, but I'm still in the saddle,** _

_**Cryin' your name out to the clouds,** _

_**Hey yaw, Hey yaw!** _

_**Why don't you meet me, back at the tepee?** _

_**We'll lay down by the campfire.** _

_**There, in the dark night, we'll smoke the peace pipe,** _

_**Forget about who's wrong or right.** _

_**Hey yaw, Hey yaw!** _

They both sing the lines, harmonizing perfectly. Laura keeps her eyes closed for some of it, as if she’s putting her soul into the song. 

**_Yeah, it was a big showdown, oh yeah, we stood our ground._ **

**_Shot out the lights: it got a little crazy._ **

**_I don't wanna see us go, the way of the buffalo:_ **

**_Don't wanna have another wild west show._ **

**_Hey yaw, Hey yaw!_ **

  _ **Only forgiveness, will finally end this.**_

_**There won't be a witness if we both fall.** _

_**There's never a hero, in a battle of egos.** _

_**There's never a winner of the quick draw.** _

_**Hey yaw, Hey yaw!** _

When they sing the chorus again, it’s almost like there’s another voice singing with them, echoing more than their voices, sounding almost ghostlike. Where did that come from?

_**Yeah, it was a big showdown, oh yeah, we stood our ground.** _

_**Shot out the lights: it got a little crazy.** _

_**Don't wanna see us go, the way of the buffalo:** _

_**Don't wanna have another wild west show.** _

_**Hey yaw, Hey yaw!** _

_**Hey yaw, Hey yaw!** _

Maybe the song is talking about how they don’t want their way of life to end, like others have. They don’t want to just become a memory of a world that used to be, and isn’t anymore.

_**It's like a ghost town, without you around.** _

_**Why can't we just forget it, ride off in the sunset?** _

_**It was a big showdown, Oh yeah, we stood our ground.** _

_**Shot out the lights: it got a little crazy.** _

_**I don't wanna see us go, the way of the buffalo:** _

_**Don't wanna have another wild west show.** _

_**Hey yaw, Hey yaw!** _

_**I'm feelin' like Tonto, ridin' a Pinto,** _

_**Tryin' to chase the Lone Ranger down.** _

The last note rings out in the now silent barn, the three friends tilting their heads down to look at the floor as the song ends and the music fades away. Then when they look up again, the room erupts in clapping. 

“How’re ya’ll doin’ tonight?” Jeremy asks, causing everyone to cheer louder. Again, just like last week, his girlfriend squeals the loudest, making his grin get even wider. 

“We got a couple more fer ya, so here we go with th’ next’n,” he says. Laura’s set her guitar down on it’s stand, grabbing ahold of her mic with both hands as the guys start playing the next song. 

As soon as they recognize it, several girls start cheering, excited that ‘their song’ is being played tonight. 

_Right now he's probably slow dancing with a bleached-blond tramp,_

_and she's probably getting frisky..._

_right now, he's probably buying her some fruity little drink_

_'cause she can't shoot whiskey..._

_Right now, he's probably up behind her with a pool stick,_

_showing her how to shoot a combo…_

I can see Laura smirk behind her microphone as she sing the next line.

_And he don't know…_

The music builds, and Laura taps her foot faster, nodding her head as the song gets more intense.

 _That I dug my key into the side_ _of his pretty little souped up 4 wheel drive,_ _carved my name into his leather seats..._

_I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights, slashed a hole in all 4 tires..._

_Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats._

So this is a cheating song. Huh. Didn’t figure that Laura would be the kind to sing one like this, but it does sort of make sense. She’s been cheated on before. And this song seems to describe the situation that she told us perfectly. The girl he went for was a girlier girl than Laura. But did she really trash his car? I can’t see Laura doing that. I’ll have to ask later.

 _Right now, she's probably up singing some_ _white-trash version of Shania karaoke._

 _Right now, she's probably saying, "I'm drunk"_ _and he's a-thinking that he's gonna get lucky,_

 _Right now, he's probably dabbing on_ _3 dollars worth of that bathroom Polo..._

_Oh, and he don't know..._

_That I dug my key into the side_ _of his pretty little souped up 4 wheel drive,_ _carved my name into his leather seats,_

 _I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights,_ _slashed a hole in all 4 tires..._

_Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats._

Laura’s so intense with this song, I’m getting chills from hearing her voice. It’s got this dangerous edge to it, like she’s a snake, poised to strike if provoked, ready to attack. 

 _I might've saved a little trouble for the next girl,_ _'cause the next time that he cheats..._

_Oh, you know it won't be on me!_

_No... not on me_

The music builds again, and Laura looks as if she's got an electric current running through her, she's got so much energy.

 _'Cause I dug my key into the side_ _of his pretty little souped up 4 wheel drive,_ _carved my name into his leather seats..._

 _I took a Louisville slugger to both headlights,_ _slashed a hole in all 4 tires..._

_Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats._

_Oh, maybe next time he'll think before he cheats..._

_Oh, before he cheats... oh, oh._

As she finishes the last note, she holds her fist up in the air, applause filling the air. 

“An’ this here last one, ‘m dedicatin’ ta Lulu, cause she likes ‘em,” Jeremy says. Laura gives him a joking glare, starting to strum her guitar nonetheless, a small smile on her face. 

Jeremy begins to sings, a joking grin on his face. 

**Well Momma was exhausted after she had me, it took two nurses to hold me, one nurse to slap me.**

**Doctor turned to momma and shook his head, wiped the sweat off his brow, and then he said ,**

**"This boy’s way off the charts, as far as I can tell, ooo brrrrrr momma he's a double X L!"**

People laugh and cheer, obviously familiar with the song, and begin singing along as Jeremy continues.

**By second grade I was 5' 2"! By fifth grade I was wearing a size 12 shoe!**

**In eighth grade I was shopping at the Big and Tall, and the coaches had me playing High School football.**

**Uncle Roy said "Boy you'll make the NFL! ooo brrrrrr son, you're a double XL!"**

**Double XL, Double XL!**

**Dont call me on the phone just ring my dinner bell.**

**Double XL Double XL!**

**I’m a lean, mean, love machine that likes to be held,**

**ooo bbrrrrrrr baby I’m a double XL!**

**Here we go!**

**Country cuties in Texas, string bikinis in Florida, Barbie Dolls driving Lexus, out in California.**

**A skinny little pretty boy ain’t what they wanna hold, they want a real man with meat on his bones!**

**I'll yank their Yankees, ring their Southern Belles, they say**

 Laura leans into her microphone, fluttering her eyelashes as she says,

  _"ooo brrrrrrr we looooove a double XL!"_

 _Now_  I get the strange dedication. Jeremy said yesterday Laura likes big men, and this is a song about one. 

**Double XL, Double XL!**

**Don't call me on the phone just ring my dinner bell.**

**Double XL Double XL!**

**I’m a lean, mean, love machine that likes to be held,**

**ooo bbrrrrrrr baby I’m a double XL!**

**Double XL solo!**

Kyle steps forward for the guitar solo, playing every note as if he could do the same thing in his sleep, stepping back when he’s finished. 

**Well double XL double XL**

**Don’t call me on the phone just ring my dinner bell!**

**Double XL, double XL!**

**I’m a lean mean love machine that likes to be held,**

**ooo brrrr baby I’m a double XL!**

**Well if you have any doubts you can see for yourself, why all the girls love a double XL**

**ooo brrrrr yeah I’m a double XL!**

**YEAAAH!**

When the song is over, everyone cheers again. 

“Thank ya! We’ll be here next week too!” Jeremy says. Then they jump off the stage, weaving their way through the crowd of people to get to their trucks to put their guitars away. 


	18. Chapter 18

Laura’s Point of View

“You two behave yerselves, ya hear?” Sheila tells Johnny and Hanna as she waves goodbye from the front seat of the Dillon’s truck.

She and Jim were going to head up to visit his father in the hospital, and asked me if I would watch their two youngest for the day so they wouldn’t be in the older boys’ way when they went to work in the field. I of course said I would, knowing how fun it is to watch the two kids. 

“We will, ma!” Johnny shouts back. The truck drives away, and the two kids turn to me. “So what’re we gonna do Lulu?” 

“Well, I’m gonna help th’ guys muck out th’ stalls. Ya can watch us 'r ya can watch a movie.”

“I’ll watch you,” Johnny says. Figures. He always likes to be where the action is. 

“What 'bout you, honey?” I ask Hanna. 

“I’ll go in the barn with you Lulu,” she replies. 

‘A’right let’s go then.” Johnny jumps up onto my back, and Hanna grabs ahold of my hand, and I walk to the stables, where the guys are waiting. 

The large manure spreader sits in the middle of the stalls, within throwing distance of each stall door. We took the horses out to the pasture earlier, so that they’d be out of the way when we cleaned their stalls. 

“So, e’ryone grab a fork an’ pick a stall. Jus’ scoop th’ stuff out an’ throw it in th’ spreader till it’s clean,” I explain. Johnny hops off, running over to grab a fork and bring it over to me. “Thank you.” Hanna climbs up onto the tractor hooked to the front of the manure spreader, sitting in the plush yellow seat. 

I walk into Rebel’s stall, and begin hauling forkfuls of poop out the door, slinging them into the large wooden wagon. My horse is always the messiest. 

“Lulu?” I hear Johnny call. 

“What?” I answer.

“Can I drive th’ tractor out ta dump it?”

“Maybe. We’ll see when it gets full,” I reply. 

Zayn’s Point of View

This is disgusting. It smells horrible, and this  _shit_  is so heavy. I can literally  _feel_  the smell sticking to my clothes. How can one horse make so much… shit?

Not that I’m going to complain out loud though. I don’t want Laura to think I can’t handle this. 

“Iff’n ya take smaller forkfuls, yer arms won’t get as tired,” I hear her voice say. I look up, and see her standing at the stall door. 

“I’ve got it,” I say quietly, not admitting that my arms are killing me. How much more of this do I have to do?

“Suit yerself,” she says, walking away. Is she done already? I look over at Rebel’s stall and see clean straw covering the floor of the enclosure. What the hell? How does she do that? I’m not even half done, and I started before her!

She has been doing this longer than I have though, that may be a contributing factor.

“Hi,” a small voice says. I look back over at the door and see Hanna standing there.

“Hello love,” I say, putting a smile on my face for the cute little girl. 

“Are you tired?” she asks. 

“A little,” I admit.

“D’ya wanna drink?” 

“A drink would be nice, sure.”

“C’mon then,” she says, walking into the stall and pulling my sleeve, leading me out the door and over to the water hydrant.

“Are there cups or something?” I ask, not sure how I’m supposed to get a drink from this. 

“No silly, ya drink it outta th’ hose,” Hanna explains. 

“What?” Isn’t there germs and stuff? That’s gross!

“Y’ain’t scared, are ya?” I hear Laura’s voice say as she walks up. 

“That’s kind of… gross,” I say.

She just shrugs. “Animals drink it, they ain’t dead yet. It’s the same water that comes outta th’ sink in th’ house. Only difference is this comes outta th’ hose.” 

She steps forward, turning the water on, holding the hose out away from herself so she doesn’t get her clothes wet. Then she leans over, taking big gulps of the clear water that flows out the end of the hose.  

“ ‘S jus’ like drinkin’ outta a drinkin’ fountain,” she says, holding the hose out to me. 

“I’m not gonna get sick?” She shakes her head, and I grab ahold of the hose, holding it so that I won’t get water all over myself. “Does it taste weird?”

“Water has a taste?” she asks. “I dunno, it’s always tasted fine ta me.”

I lean forward, taking a few gulps of the water. It’s cold, and has a bit of a rusty aftertaste to it. But overall, it’s not too bad. 

“Lulu!” Johnny calls, and she turns to look at him. I shut the water off, setting the hose back on the ground. “Lookit!”

“Get down, yer gonna fall,” she says. He’s standing on the front of the tractor, balancing on one foot. 

“Catch me!” he shouts, jumping toward her. She reaches her arms out, catching him and setting his feet down on the ground.

“Yer gettin’ a little big ta be doin’ that, mister,” she says, tapping him on the nose with her finger. I smile as I walk back to the stall I was working in. She’s cute with kids, there’s no doubt in that. 

I sigh, then pick up the pitchfork from where I leaned it against the wall. Back to work it is. 

Louis’ Point of View

Around lunchtime, we finish with the horse stalls, and head inside to eat. Hanna and Johnny are running around the bunkhouse while Laura’s in the kitchen area. 

“Johnny! I said get yer shoes offa th’ couch!” she calls, even though she’s facing away from him, pulling something out of the fridge. 

“But you can’t even see me!” Johnny whines, hopping off of the couch and walking over to the door to take his boots off. 

“Got eyes in th’ back o’ my head, ain’t yer ma told ya that?” she asks, setting a bowl of mashed potatoes on the table. 

“She said it was a mama thing though. Lulu, you ain’t a mama,” Hanna says. I almost miss the way Laura stiffens when she hears it, but she shakes her head a little, turning back to get something else.

“ ‘M close ‘nuff,” she mutters, “watchin’ you two. Go wash yer hands, food’s ready.”

The lads and I sit down at the table, waiting for the two kids to get back. Laura sets another plate, this one with meatloaf on it. 

“That goes fer ya’ll too. Go wash yer hands.” For real? My hands aren’t even dirty! 

“But I’m hungry!” Niall whines. 

“Wash yer hands, an’ you’ll get ta eat sooner.” 

The rest of the lads reluctantly get up, walking over to the bathroom and lining up in front of the sink. Laura cocks an eyebrow at me. 

“You goin’?”

“No,” I say stubbornly. “My hands are clean.”

“Did ya wash ‘em a’ready?”

I open my mouth to tell her yes, I rinsed them off with the hose while we were outside. But she speaks again before I can get a sound out. 

“With soap?”

I sigh. “Not with soap.”

“Go wash yer hands then,” she says, sounding a bit annoyed. 

“No, they’re clean.” I have no clue why we’re arguing about something so petty, but I’m tired of being told what to do. I’m an adult, I can do what I want. And my hands are clean.

“Please,” she tries. I cross my arms, sitting back in my chair.

“Make me.” 

She lets out a frustrated sigh, then takes three swift steps, standing in front of me. She grabs my arm, and before I know what’s happening, I’m slung over her shoulders, and she’s walking toward the bathroom. 

“What the hell? Put me down!” I say, kicking my legs. How in the hell is she holding me up?

“Don’t swear, there’s kids here,” she says shortly, wrapping one arm around my legs to hold them still. How is she not falling over from carrying me?

She walks into the bathroom and sets me down. 

“Wash yer hands,” she orders, then walks away. The other lads look at me confusedly. 

“Did she...  _carry_  you all the way over here?” Harry asks.

“I didn’t go willingly,” I reply grumpily, straightening out my shirt. 

“What the heck? Is she like, a she-hulk or something?” Niall asks. 

“I don’t know, she doesn’t seem like she’d be that strong,” I reply. 

When we walk back out to the table, I find a napkin on top of my plate. I pull it off, looking for a note. Yep, in the corner. 

_It’s called work. You should try it sometime._

It is  _on_  now. she’s gonna get it.

Later that night, around midnight or so, after I’m sure everyone is asleep, I tiptoe out of my room and into Laura’s. Thankfully she left her door open, so I don’t need to worry about any creaking noises from that. 

I tiptoe over to her closet, careful not to make too much noise. I don’t want to wake her or Yankee up. That would be bad. 

I step into her closet, looking around until I find what I’m looking for. I walk back out, making my way quietly to the door with my arms full. I hear a soft thud, and look back without stopping. I dropped one. Darn. 

I take the rest to my room, hiding them under a blanket in my closet, then go back to retrieve the one I dropped. I look over at Laura when I tiptoe back into her room, making sure she’s still asleep. Her eyes are closed, her mouth hanging half open as she lays there, one arm under her pillow and one arm around Yankee, who’s asleep next to her. She looks asleep. 

I quietly creep over, picking up the item I dropped. 

As I stand, something flies past my arm, startling me. My head whips around when I hear the knife stick into the wall behind me, my eyes wide. 

“Go ‘way,” I hear Laura mumble, and I quickly turn to look at her. Her dark eyes are open, a glare on her face as she stares at me. Shit, I’ve been caught. 

Without a second thought, I turn and run from her room, shutting the door of my room behind me and leaning up against it, holding my prize in my hand. I made it.

The next morning, I wake up sitting against the door of my room, where I stayed all night, scared that Laura was going to come get me. Well, no, I wasn’t really scared… I just… okay, I was a little scared. Can you blame me? It isn’t every night that I get  _knives_  thrown at me. I stand, my bones cracking and my muscles stiff from staying on the floor all night. But I did it.

The clock on my nightstand says it’s eight thirty, and today is Sunday. So we don’t have to work today. Not sure why that’s in our contracts, that we get Sundays off, but it’s nice.

Every day feels like it’s been sort of the same. Wake up, eat breakfast, go outside and work, come back inside and eat lunch, go back to work, then supper in the main house, then the evenings are usually spent whatever we want to do. But that’s not quite the same when I’m really tired from everything we’ve done that day. I like having one entire day a week to myself, to do whatever I want, without Laura telling me what to do. 

And today, I’m going to sleep in. 

I crawl into my bed, pulling the blankets over my head to block out the sun, and fall back asleep. 

Laura’s Point of View

 _That horny little shit_ , is all I can think as I stand in my closet, in front of an empty drawer. What’s s’posed to be in it? My bras. And they aren’t. Good thing I’ve gotten back into the habit of sleeping with one on, otherwise he would be in for an ass-whooping. That’s probably what he wants. Wants me to come walking in there without a bra on and … nope. Not happening.

I grab a clean shirt and a pair of jeans, putting them on and sliding my feet into my boots. I grab my purse and my Bible, walking out my room door and down the stairs to the kitchen and grabbing an apple to eat on the way to church. 

When I come home, the first thing I see is Louis sitting in the armchair that’s facing the door. He hears me walk in, and looks up from his phone. His eyebrows furrow in confusion, but he doesn’t say anything. I walk up the stairs to my room, putting my stuff away, and then make my way back downstairs into the kitchen to make lunch. 

How to get him back for this… hmmm…. 

“Hey Laura,” I hear Liam say as he walks downstairs.

“Hey,” I reply. “How’re you?”

“Pretty good, what about you?”

“ ‘M a’right.Can ya put this on th’ table, please?” I answer, handing him a plate of toast. 

I write a note on one of the napkins, then drop it onto Louis’ plate as I pass him to get to my chair.

_I sleep in one, genius._

As he reads it, I can see a look of frustration form on his face, and I smirk. 

Laura - 3, Louis - 2

That evening, as I’m folding the load of laundry that just came out of the dryer, I get an idea, and begin forming a plan in my head. 

Later that night, after I’m sure everyone is asleep, I slide out of my bed, and creep soundlessly into Louis’ room. With no lights on, the room is almost pitch black, only a sliver of moonlight peeking through the curtains. Just enough light to see with, but not enough light to be seen if he wakes up. 

I step over to his suitcase, which is, conveniently, left open. I look at it for a moment, memorizing how it looks so I can put everything back the way it was, just in case he’s one of those guys that has to have all their stuff the same way all the time. Then I start digging, pulling certain pieces out and setting them in a pile next to me, careful to stay quiet. 

When I’m satisfied that I’ve got them all, I put things back the way they were, minus the items I’ve ‘borrowed’, and silently go back to my room, setting my armful of things in a box in my closet. Then I go to bed, a satisfied smirk on my face. 

The next morning, I’m less than pleasantly awakened by what sound like a dying bird outside my window. That damn bluejay thinks it can sing, but it’s making me wish I were deaf. I roll out of bed nevertheless, sliding on a pair of shorts and my hoody, grabbing my shoes and walking down the stairs. 

“Hey Laura,” I hear a voice say, and I look up to see Zayn coming inside. 

“Mornin’,” I reply, surprised that he’s up this early. 

“Watcha doin?” he asks. 

“Goin’ fer a run ta get th’ mail,” I reply. 

“Oh. Can I come?”

I shrug. “Iff’n ya want. It’s a mile ‘n a half.”

He nods. “Let me get my shoes.”

He comes back down the stairs a few moments later, wearing shorts and a tshirt, his shoes laced and on his feet. We walk down the front steps, and begin jogging down the driveway. Before we go too far, I hear an angry shout.

“What the fuck?!?!” 

I immediately start laughing, knowing Louis had woken up. 

“What’s so funny?” Zayn asks. 

“Oh nothin’,” I reply.

“Really?” he asks, a smile on his face.

“Really really,” I counter. “C’mon pretty boy, let’s see how fast ya can run.”

We come back into the bunkhouse about half an hour later, sweaty and panting. We’d taken it slow at first, but near the end we had raced to see who could get back up the driveway the fastest. Zayn had had an unfair advantage though, because every time I got close enough, he would hit the mail out of my hands, then leave me to pick it up while he kept going. In his defense, he slowed down a little each time he did it, as if he was waiting for me, but it was still a little irritating nonetheless. 

“Well, was nice havin’ someone along,” I say, setting the stack of letters on the kitchen counter. 

“It was nice beating you,” he replies with a teasing smile. 

“That don’t count, I got distracted!” 

"Well, how about a rematch tomorrow then?" he asks. 

"A'right," I agree, and we part ways, Zayn going upstairs to probably change his clothes, while I go to the kitchen to start on breakfast. However, I don't get very far before...

"You!" 

I turn around, casually looking over my shoulder, and see Louis angrily storming down the stairs.

"Me?" I ask innocently, looking around as if there are other people here that he would want to talk to. 

"Yes, you. What the hell?" he asks, stomping right up to me, backing me into the counter.

"Why, whatever are you talkin' 'bout?" I ask calmly. This seems to only add to his rage. 

"What the hell did you do with them?" he hisses through his teeth. 

"With what, sugar? Gotta be specific, otherwise we might not be talkin' 'bout th' same thing," I answer, trying to hold in my smirk.

"Where are my boxers? I know you took them." 

"Oh,  _those_..." I say, acting as if I had no clue what he was talking about before. "I ain't seen 'em. Why? Did ya lose 'em?"

"You know where they are!" he shouts, acting as if he's about to lose it. Wow, I didn't know going commando was this big of a deal for him. He's obviously perfectly alright at the moment, though I can't tell if if he has anything on under his jeans.

"I do?" I ask, pushing him even farther. I tilt my head to one side, putting on an expression of confusion. "How do you know I know?"

"You know I know you kn- ugh!" he groans, stepping back to run his hands through his hair in frustration. Suddenly he's right in front of me, his arms on either side of me, his hands gripping the counter as he gets right up in my face. "Tell me where the fuck they are!" he shouts. 

His face is red, the vein on the side of his neck sticking out as he leans over me, caging me in. His eyes are a dark, angry shade of blue as they stare at me. The muscles in his arms are practically twitching on either side of me, ready for a fight. I feel a stirring in my lower stomach at the sight in front of me. He looks  _hot_  when he's mad. 

But I can't let him get the upper hand. This is  _my_  territory, we play by  _my_  rules. 

"Well, fer starters, you should ask nicely. An' second, I seem ta recall somethin' o' mine missin' as well. Perhaps you've found 'em?" 

His breathing gets heavier, only angered more by my calm tone. It looks like it's taking everything he's got in him not to break something. 

"What are you proposing?" he asks, his tone short and clipped.

"A trade," I say simply. "You gimme my stuff back, you get yer stuff back." 

He takes a few deep breaths, apparently attempting to calm down. "Alright."

"Good. Now get off me." 

He backs up a couple steps, still seething, but follows me up the steps, going into his room while I go into mine, grabbing the pile of boxers from my closet and bringing them out, dropping them onto the loft floor. Louis comes out of his room seconds later, dumping an armful of bras at my feet.

"Where's th' red one?" I ask once I don't see it in the pile. 

"What are you talking about? There's a red one right there!" he argues, gesturing toward my red sports bra.

"Not that one, th' one with th' lace," I explain. He says nothing. "C'mon, that thing cost me eighty dollars, out with it." It was an expensive bra, but it worked wonders. I've never had so many guys stare at me before.

He rolls his eyes, then goes back into his room, returning with my last bra.

"Pleasure doing business with ya," I say with an overly fake smile, taking my arm load of lingerie into into my room. "Oh, an' Louis?" I add.

"What?" he asks.

"Don't yell at me again, or I'll put you on yer prissy little ass."


	19. Chapter 19

Liam’s Point of View

After breakfast, we follow Laura out to the stables, watching as she harnesses two of the ponies and hooks them up to a small wooden wagon full of what looks like spools of wire. She says we’re going to fix the fence today. 

“Gonna need a couple of ya ta ride yer horses out there, ta keep th’ cattle ‘way from th’ fence,” she explains, “Th’ rest can ride in th’ wagon.”

Louis and Harry quickly run into the stable to saddle their horses, eager to get back in the saddle, while Niall, Zayn and I climb into the wagon, sitting up against the back of the seat on the front, where Laura sits holding the reins in her hands. 

“So what exactly were you and Louis fighting about this morning?” Niall asks. 

She laughs. “Nothin’ serious ‘s ‘e made it out ta be.”

“What happened though?” I ask. I heard Louis yelling this morning, and even though he yells a lot, he sounded angry this time. Which also seems to be happening a lot more since we’ve been here.

“ ‘E took my stuff, so I took ‘is,” she replies simply, kicking her feet up sideways on the seat, sitting sideways to she can talk to us. 

“What kind of stuff are we talking about?” Zayn asks. 

“Stuff that is important ta personal comfort,” she says. Harry and Louis lead their horses out of the stable, and Laura turns around, flicking the reins, and the ponies start forward. 

“We’ll start with th’ stuff closest, then work our way on out,” she calls back, pushing her hat farther down onto her head. 

“How much fence is there to fix?” I ask. 

“Ain’t sure. Prolly gonna take awhile though. Few days maybe. Always takes longer ‘n I want it to.”

We travel down the grassy lanes between the spacious pastures, with Laura looking at the fence the entire time, I assume she’s looking for places where it needs fixing. She pulls the ponies to a stop at a spot where the fence is sagging, then we all climb out. 

Around three in the afternoon, we’ve been back to the bunkhouse for lunch and have come back out to work on the fence. The bright sun is right overhead, and it’s really hot out. The lads and I have long abandoned our sweat-soaked shirts, slinging them over the side of the wagon with the wire in it. Even Laura seems to be affected by the heat, wiping the back of her hand across her forehead as she tightens a strand of the barbed wire around a fence post.

“Why is it so hot out?” Louis asks out loud, dragging out his words. 

“Yer in Alabama. It gets hot down here,” Laura replies.

“What do you all normally do when it gets hot out?” Niall asks. 

“Go swimmin’,” Laura replies. 

“Can we?” Harry asks excitedly. Laura sighs, her shoulders sagging a little. She looks down the fence row, thinking it over. 

“After we finish this row,” she allows. 

About ten minutes later, we cut the last wire on the row we were working on, and tossed the tools and extra wire back into the wagon.   

“A’right, crik’s over there,” Laura says, pointing over the hill. “Careful though, th’ bank’s a lil steep.”

Niall hops onto Harry’s horse behind Harry, and Louis pulls Zayn up behind him, and they take off for the water. I stay behind, helping Laura clean up. When we finish, we both climb onto the creaky seat of the wagon, and Laura starts the ponies going, following the lads. 

We pull up in the shade, where Harry and Louis have tied their horses to one of the trees, and the lads are standing on the edge of the riverbank, looking down. 

“You weren’t kidding,” Harry mutters when Laura walks over. It’s nearly a hundred feet from where we stand to the murky water below. “Is that safe to swim in?”

“Course it is,” she answers. 

“How do we get down there?” I ask. 

“Well, there’s a rope ladder hangin’ offa th’ tree, but that’s use’ly jus’ fer th’ kids,” Laura answers.

“How do  _you_  get down there?” Louis asks, rephrasing the question. 

Laura shrugs. “Jump.”

"That far?" 

"Yessir. Water's deep nuff,  jump right on in." That's a really big distance to just jump. The lads and I don't say anything for a moment.

" _But_ , iff'n ya don't wanna, I guess we could jus' go back ta work," Laura says, starting to walk back to the wagon. 

"That doesn't look completely safe," Niall mutters. 

"I know. But I don't want to go back to work. That fence is pokey," Louis says.

Suddenly there's a blur of color going past us, then Laura jumps off the edge of the riverbank, diving gracefully into the water with a splash.

"What the - ?" we all say, looking over the edge of the bank. 

She stays underwater just long enough to get me worried, then I see her head pop up above the surface.

“C’mon!” she calls, waving at us.

“Well, if she can make it, we should be able to,” Harry says, sliding his boots and socks off.

“You’re not gonna get naked, are you?” Zayn asks. “You don’t want to scar the poor girl.”

“I’m keeping my boxers on, she’ll be fine,” Harry says, tossing his jeans on top of his shirt and boots. “Come on, it’ll be fun.” The others shrug, then start to strip as well. Eh, I don’t want to be the only one left up here, might as well join in. I tug my shirt over my head, kicking my boots off before pulling my socks off of my feet.

I hear a couple splashes, and figure some of the lads must have jumped in as well. I look down and see Laura splashing Harry while he tries to dunk her underwater. 

I step over to the edge, standing next to Niall, who seems a little nervous. 

“What’s even down there?” he asks. 

“Well, there’s a Laura, and a Harry, and a Zayn, and I think that’s a Louis,” I joke, trying to make him feel better. 

“I know that! I can see! But what if there’s stuff under there that we land on, and then-” 

“Niall, you’ll be fine. Come on. I’ll jump with you if you want.”  

He looks over at me, then sheepishly nods, a small smile on his face.  

“Alright, on the count of three,” I start. “One… two… three!” I push off of the ground, jumping into the air, and for a split second I feel as if I’m flying, suspended in the air for milliseconds. Then I’m falling, down, down, down. Faster and faster. I feel the air rushing over me, giving me chills. My stomach is in my throat, threatening to come out at any second, and then I hit the water. 

It’s cold, a nice contrast to the heat of the day. I swim back up to the surface, taking a deep breath. I look around for Niall, but I don’t see him in the water. Then I see his blonde hair pop up, and swim over to him. 

“It wasn't that bad, was it?” I ask.

“No, it wasn't. And this feels amazing.”

“Chicken fights!” Louis shouts, jumping on top of Harry’s shoulders. Laura squeals as Zayn pops up underneath her, slinging her legs over his shoulders.

After a few round of chicken fights, which Laura and Zayn won by a longshot, we’re all climbing back up the rope ladder, going back to the top of the riverbank. 

“This ‘s prolly th’ best part o’ goin’ swimmin’,” Laura says, laying out in the sun on top of the long grass. 

“What?” I ask. 

“Jus’ layin’ out ‘n watchin’ th’ clouds,” she replies, wringing the water out of her hair. “Gotta let yerself dry off ‘fore ya can really do anythin’.”

I stretch out on my stomach, letting the warm sunlight dry the water off of me. 

“So is this where you bring all the guys?” Louis asks. 

“Nope,” she replies. 

“Really?”

“Yeah, this ‘s kinda a spot ev’ryone knows ‘bout. Me 'n th’ Dillon’s been comin’ here fer years. I ain’t gonna bring a guy back here iff’n ev’ryone knows where we’re goin’,” she replies, muttering the last part. “Ain’t as much fun.”

She rolls over, laying on her stomach, and closes her eyes, soaking in the sunlight. 

“How do you not get sunburned? You’re outside all the time,” Niall asks. 

“ ‘M outside all th’ time,” she replies. “My skin’s used to it. Don’t hurt that there’s some redskin blood in me too.”

“What?” I ask. 

“Part Cherokee. Mama’s side.”

“So wait. You’re part… what do they call it… Native American?” Zayn asks.

She nods. “Ayup.” 

“ _That’s_  why she looks like Pocahontas…” Harry mutters.

Laura laughs quietly. “Ain’t heard that’n ‘fore.” 

“Really?” Now that I think about it, she does look a bit like Pocahontas. The one from the Disney movie, anyway. She’s got the hair, the face, even the dark tan, almost red skin. The only difference seems to be that Laura keeps her hair up all the time. 

“No, really. I ain’t heard that’n.”

“Do you have a pet racoon?” Zayn asks.

She shakes her head. “Naw, tried it once. Damn thing bit my leg.” 

“Ouch,” Harry says, wincing.

“Weren’t too bad. Got a sweet scar from it,” she replies, bending her knee and lifting her foot off of the ground. I can see a small crescent shaped mark on her ankle. That does look kind of cool, I guess. 

It’s quiet for awhile, just the sound of the warm summer breeze blowing and the leaves rustling in the trees. Birds are singing every once in awhile. It’s a really calming sound, and I find myself fighting to keep my eyes open. 

“Liam?” I hear a voice say. Something nudges me, and I roll over, shielding my face with my arms as I try to go back to sleep.

“Liam… c’mon ya little shit, we gotta go.” I can tell it’s Laura, and that she’s saying it fondly, not in anger. So I decide to play along, swatting blindly at where I think she is. 

“Liam, c’mon, I gotta make supper, an’ I don’t wanna leave ya out here by yerself.” 

I sigh, then open my eyes, squinting in the light. It’s gotten considerably darker, the sun is close to disappearing over the horizon.

“I’m coming, hang on,” I tell her, my voice rough and scratchy. I look around as I sit up, frowning when I don’t see the other lads.

“Where’s everyone else?” I ask.

“Sent ‘em up ta start on feedin’ th’ horses,” she says, offering a hand to help me to my feet. I slide my hand into her rough one, and stand. 

I notice that the wagon is gone, leaving the two horses that Harry and Louis brought out. 

“Which horse ya want?” she asks as we begin to walk over toward them. “Frodo’s a lil jumpier’n Misty, iff’n that makes a difference.” 

Of course she would give Louis the jumpy horse. She must have known it would keep him from causing trouble by keeping him occupied. However, I’m not used to either one of them, so I decide on the calmer of the two. 

“I’ll take Misty.” 

She smirks. “Shoulda figured you’d say that. C’mon.”

We climb onto the horses, and start off down the lane, walking the horses through the tall grass. 

“Hey Liam?” Laura says after a little while. 

“Hmm?” I ask, turning to look at her.

“Yer it!” she shouts, reaching over to hit my arm before taking off, galloping away from me. 

“Aw, come on!” I groan with a smile, urging Misty into a gallop, chasing after her. 

As I’m gaining on her, it occurs to me that I’ve never ridden this fast before. Sure, I’ve been in cars and other things that go faster than a horse, but this is different. I can feel the rush of air on my face, mixed with the tickle of Misty’s mane as it flies back. Everything is slightly blurred as it flies past me, yet I can see every detail. My stomach is churning, but not in a bad way. There’s a rush of adrenaline coursing through me, and I feel so free, it’s insane. 

Before I know it, a loud laugh escapes my lips, and I catch up to Laura, reaching out to tag her back. 

“Hey!” she laughs, turning around to see me right next to her. “How’d you-?”

She reaches out for me, and I pull back on the reins a little, slowing down just enough to be out of her reach.  

“Liam!” she laughs. 

We keep going like that, laughing and racing back to the stable, until we pull the horses to a stop right outside the large sliding doors. 

“I think I won that one,” I say proudly as we lead the horses through the doors. 

“Shut up,” Laura says fondly, punching my arm with a smile. 

We put the horses back in their stalls, then finish up the chores before the lads and I go into the bunkhouse to wash up, and Laura goes to fix supper. 

“So, what were you and Laura laughing so much about?” Harry asks as we crowd around the sink.  

“We were having fun, playing tag,” I answer. 

“What?  _Laura_? Having  _fun_?” Louis asks, walking into the bathroom. 

“Yeah. She is a fun person if you aren’t annoying her all the time,” Zayn speaks up. 

“Who says I’m annoying her?” Louis shoots back. “What if she’s annoying me?”

“She doesn’t seem like the type to just take your underwear without a good reason,” Niall says. He makes a good point. Wait, underwear? Where’d that come from?

“So what? She started it,” Louis defends. 

“Sure she did…” 

Laura’s Point of View

By Wednesday, we’ve finished fixing the fence, and I couldn’t be more grateful. I hate messing with barbed wire. But now it’s done, so we shouldn’t have to mess with it again until next year. Hopefully. 

I flop down on my bed, and immediately I curl into a ball, my stomach feeling like it’s trying to kill itself. Not  _now_ , I was just getting comfy. I walk to my bathroom, nearly falling over when the first wave of cramps hits me. Shit, I wasn’t ready for this… 

After I’ve sufficiently made it so that I won’t bleed everywhere, I down the last couple ibuprofen I have in a futile attempt to get rid of the cramps. I know it won’t work too well, but it’s all I’ve got. 

I crawl back into bed, pulling the covers over my head and closing my eyes, knowing it’ll take me forever to fall asleep. It always does this time of the month. 

After I’ve tossed and turned, thrown the blankets off and pulled them back on multiple times, and counted six thousand five hundred and fifty three… fifty four… fifty five sheep, I hear a noise, and see a shadow enter my room. 

Usually I would freak out, but I know it’s Louis. He’s been coming in here every night the past couple days, trying to pull another prank on me. But every time he gets close to wherever he’s going, I chuck a knife in his direction and he splits, running like a scared rabbit. I’m surprised he’s come back for more. 

I see him glance over at me, and quickly shut my eyes, counting to three before I open them again. He never actually looks to make sure that I’m asleep, it’s more of a glance to see if I’m there. 

I watch him tiptoe across the hardwood floor, his sock clad feet making less noise than last night. He must have read the note I left him on his napkin this morning. 

I slowly, quietly, slide my hand under my pillow, feeling around along the edge of my bed until I come across the wooden handle. 

Don’t get me wrong, no matter how annoying he can get, I don’t want to hurt him. That’s just mean. I never aim for him, I aim for the wall. And I always make sure to throw it far enough away from him that I know it won’t hit him. I just want to scare him, not injure him. 

He’s almost to the closet, and I flick my wrist, aiming for the door of my closet, something that’ll be easy to fix. 

However, I wasn’t expecting that he wouldn’t see it, and keep moving. 

“Ow!” he yelps, clutching his arm. I sit up, ignoring the pain in my gut. “What the hell?” he asks as he glares over at me. 

“Hey, don’t blame me, you usu’lly move 'way from it,” I say. “Ya a'right?”

“I don’t know,” he looks down at his wrist. “I’m bleeding.”

“C’mere,” I tell him, beckoning him forward with my hand. He shakes his head, taking a step back. “Good Lord, I ain’t got any more, jus’ c’mere, ‘fore ya get blood all over yerself.”

He hesitantly walks over to me, standing at the edge of my bed. 

“Lemme see it,” I say, reaching for his arm. He withholds it, almost glaring at me for a second, then he holds it out to me so I can see what the damage is.

"Ain't too bad," I say, "siddown, I'll get a bandage."

He sits down on the edge of my bed, holding on to his arm like he thinks its going to fall off at any second. I get up, walking over to the bathroom and opening the cupboard, pulling out a roll of gauze, some paper towel, and antibiotic ointment. I bring them back out, setting them on my bed. 

I take the paper towel, folding it in half a couple times before picking up his arm.

"This 's gonna sting," I warn him, then press the paper towel onto the medium sized cut, soaking up the blood. His eyes go wide, and he grits his teeth, his jaw clenching in an effort to stay strong. 

Once the cut is clean, and has mostly stopped bleeding, I put the antibiotic on it, then wrap the gauze snugly around his wrist, careful not to make it too tight. 

"There ya go," I say, dropping his arm, "Now get outta here."

"Why are you so mean to me?"

"Why d'ya ask so many questions?" I shoot back, putting the stuff away. 

“Oh, so it’s the questions?” he sasses. “Why won’t you just answer them? It’s not like they’re hard questions.”

“Maybe not ta you,” I mutter. “You ain’t th’ one answerin’ ‘em.” He doesn’t know. He won’t ever know. 

“Is it that hard to say whether you want kids or not? I know -”

“You don’t know shit, so don’t say ya do,” I snap. “Go ‘way.” He needs to get out of here before I start crying. Stupid hormones. 

“No, I’m not leaving until you tell me-”

“I said leave!” I snarl, shoving at his shoulder. He slides off of my bed, barely staying upright, and turns to glare at me. 

He looks like he wants to say something, but I stand, walking over to him and pushing him toward the door, then out of my room. I shut the door, leaning against it, and slide down to sit on the floor, taking deep breaths, trying to rid my mind of the awful memories playing through it. 

Secret doctor visits, frequent hospital trips, and lots of lying is all I can think of. I pull my knees up to my chest, folding my arms and burying my head in them.

Louis’ Point of View

The next morning, I walk downstairs for breakfast, half expecting a note on my plate like usual. When I see no sign of Laura’s swirly handwriting, I shrug it off, thinking maybe she just didn’t feel like it today.  

When Laura sits down, she takes no notice of me, even though I’m the only other one out here besides her. She just sits there, silently eating her pancakes, the only sounds being the clinking of her fork against her plate. 

She looks tired, her eyes are red as she blinks every once in a while, seemingly fighting to stay awake. 

“Morning all,” Liam says cheerfully as he walks into the kitchen, sitting down at the table.

“Mornin’,” Laura mumbles quietly.

“Are you alright?” Liam asks. “You look tired.”

“Jus’ peachy,” she replies. “Couldn’t sleep.”

“Aw, that’s too bad,” Liam says sympathetically. “Are you okay to work today?”

She nods. “Don’t worry ‘bout me, I’ll be fine.” 

Today we’re up on the roof of the barns, fixing a few places where it needs to be patched to keep the rain out. Laura’s been alright, just quiet. Really quiet, even for her. I can tell that the other lads are a little worried, and I’m getting a little concerned too. 

At the moment, Laura’s fixing lunch, and the lads and I are up on the roof, still working.

“What’s up with Laura today?” Harry mutters to me. I shrug, because i don’t know for sure.

“She said she couldn’t sleep last night,” Liam answers. “Wonder why.”

I look up to see that he’s looking at me suspiciously. 

“Don’t look at me, I didn’t do anything!” I say, putting my hands up. “Why do I always get blamed for stuff?”

“Cause you’re usually the one that did it,” Niall laughs.

“Fine. I went in her room last night, but _I_  didn’t keep her up all night,” I confess. “She did that herself.”

“Uh huh…” Liam says, not sounding convinced. “What happened?”

“I don’t even know. One second she was fine, and the next she’s shoving me out the door. I don’t know what I did. Maybe she’s just grumpy.” 

“Do you think…” Harry starts, trailing off.

“Do we think what?” I ask.

“Do you think she’s… on her period or something?” he asks, speaking quietly, as if he doesn’t want anyone to hear us. 

“That’s possible, I guess. That would explain the mood swing or whatever Louis was talking about.” They all turn to look at me. 

“What?” I ask, confused. 

“You have the most sisters, do you think...  _that’s_... what it is?” Niall asks. I roll my eyes.

“I don’t know, it’s not like some sixth sense that I’ve got. I just know what to do, not how to tell if that’s what it is.”

“But you know what girls are like, right?” Liam asks. 

“I guess. Maybe you should just ask Laura if you wanna know that bad.”

“Ew, no, that’s awkward.”

“Food’s ready!” Laura calls from the bunkhouse porch. The lads and I quickly scramble to get off of the roof, then run inside, eager to eat. 

After lunch, Laura lets us stay inside for the rest of the afternoon, being the hottest part of the day, and she doesn’t want us to get sun poisoning or something like that. She sort of mumbles it, so I can’t understand it very well.  

Then she flops down onto the couch, curling up in a ball, turning on the TV and playing a movie. 

“Mind if we join you, love?” Liam asks softly. 

“Whatever ya want,” she mumbles, her eyes half closed. The lot of us find places to sit, Liam and Harry on the couch with Laura, and Niall, Zayn and I on the other couch. Laura has her head leaning on the armrest, barely paying attention to the horses running across the screen in front of her, almost dozing off. 

By the time the movie’s halfway over, she’s out, curled into a tight ball, snuggled into Liam’s side, her head on his arm. 


	20. Chapter 20

Laura’s Point of View

I wake with a start, feeling like I’m falling, and grab onto whatever just moved under my head.

“Easy love, are you alright?” I hear a voice ask.

I sniffle, which actually sounds like an awful snort, and blink a few times, sitting up and trying to figure out why I’m not floating down a river of chocolate while sitting on a giant waffle like I was in my dream.

“Laura?” I hear Liam call again.

“What?” I ask, my voice low and gravelly. All I want to do right now is sleep some more.

“Are you alright?” he asks, chuckling a little.

“Mm-hmm, ‘m fine,” I reply, my words slurred. I stretch my legs out, then swing them up onto the couch, laying them over top of Harry’s and Liam’s legs and laying my head on the armrest, closing my eyes again.

“Are you just going to sleep for the rest of the day?” I hear Harry ask.

“Yup,” I say.

After a couple minutes, I feel something run along the bottom of my foot, and quickly turn over, sitting up and tucking my feet under me.

“Don’t touch my feet,” I growl.

“Why not?” Harry asks. “Are you... ticklish?”

“No, I jus’ don’t like people touchin’ my feet.”

“Really?” he asks, slowly starting to crawl across Liam, like a wolf stalking toward a rabbit.

“Don’t. Yer gonna get kicked. I ain’t kiddin’,” I warn. “You touch my feet, I ain’t responsible fer yer injuries.”

He doesn’t heed the warning, the poor stupid boy. He keeps inching closer, an almost sinister smirk on his face. I slowly move away, matching his slow advance with my own slow retreat, squishing myself into the armrest of the couch. Before too long, he’s right up in my face, looking me right in the eyes.

“Don’t do nothin’ stupid,” I say quietly. He laughs, then I see his hands dart toward my feet.

Harry’s Point of View

One second, I’m almost on top of Laura, the next, I’m on the floor, my arms held above my head by the girl sitting on top of me. How the- ?

“Don’t. Touch. My. Feet,” she says simply, then gets up, sitting back on the couch, tucking her feet underneath herself. She yawns, then lays her head on the armrest of the couch again.

“Why are you so tired?” I ask curiously.

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“Why not?”

“Cause my guts feel like they’re bein’ ripped out,” she says. “Hard ta sleep when ya feel like yer dyin’.”

Oh. Well, I’ve never heard it explained that way before. She must see the look on my face, because she half-glares at me before saying, “yeah, yer lucky y’ain’t a girl.”

She yawns again, curling herself into a tight little ball, tucking her head under her arm.

The other lads are either watching the movie, or - in Zayn and Louis' case - asleep.

I crawl over to her, then poke her shoulder.

She swats at me half-heartedly, mumbling something I can’t understand.

“What was that?”

“Lemme sleep,” she grumbles, swatting her hands at me again. Suddenly she falls off of the couch, landing on my lap.

“Are you alright?” I ask. She nods, curling herself up against me, nudging her head under my arm like an oversized kitten. When she stops moving around, I ask, “are you comfy?”

“Mm-hmm,” she hums. I move a little, turning so I can lean my back up against the couch.  Within seconds, she’s asleep, in what looks like the most uncomfortable position she could have wormed her way into. But she’s comfy I guess, so I’ll leave her alone.

I move my hand, setting it on top of her head. She tenses momentarily, before relaxing, moving her head upward, pushing into my hand, letting out a content hum, almost like a purring sound.

"So she gets cuddly when she’s sleepy,” Niall observes. I look up at him to see him looking curiously down at Laura.

“I guess so,” I chuckle, smoothing her hair with my hand. She smiles a little in her sleep, turning her head and nuzzling her nose into my shoulder. I smile, and lean my head back against the couch, closing my eyes.

When I wake up, Laura’s gone, and I’ve been moved onto the couch, a blanket thrown over me.

I sit up, rubbing my eyes and looking around. It’s still light outside, so it can’t be too late. I hear the screen door open and close, and see Liam walk in.

“Hey mate, Laura told me to come get you. Supper’s ready,” he says.

“Alright, I’m coming.” I stand up, fixing my hair before following Liam out the door and across the driveway to the main ranch house.

That night, while I’m laying in bed, a huge crack of thunder sounds, making me jump, startling me from my almost dreaming state. The loud rain on the roof makes it impossible to go back to sleep, and I pull my pillow over my face to shut out the sound.

The pillow blocks the loud drumming of the raindrops, but I still hear the soft call of my name from the person standing in the doorway of my room.

“Haz?”

I pull back the covers, making room for Louis to climb in next to me. He does so quickly, scrambling to hide his face under the warm blankets.

This is a normal thing, Louis coming in my room when he gets scared at night. He’s done it several times since we’ve known each other. I’ve come to expect it, whenever there’s a storm or loud noises outside during the night, I can always count on Louis sneaking into my bed.

“You know, if Laura sees this, she’s gonna give you hell for it,” I mumble.

“Well, fuck Laura then. She’s been ignoring me anyway,” he replies, cuddling right up into my chest.

“Really?” I ask. I thought she was just grumpy, I didn’t realize until now that she hasn’t spoken to Louis directly all day. “Why?”

“I don’t know.” There’s a hitch in his voice, the telltale sign that he’s lying. I’ve been around him long enough to pick up on the little detail.

“Louis…” I say, prompting him to start explaining. A loud boom of thunder shakes the house, and Louis gets as close to me as he can, making himself smaller by curling into a ball.

“I don’t know, I swear!” he says. “One second she’s fine, just fixing my arm, then she’s all ‘get out!’ I don’t know what I did!”

“What exactly happened?” I ask. Maybe if I know, I can help him figure out what to do.

“I went in there, trying to pull another prank on her. This one was gonna be the best one yet, I was -”

“Lou, you’re rambling.”

“Sorry. I went in her room, and she threw this knife at me. Usually she misses, but this time she actually hit me! Like, cut my arm.” So that’s where the bandage came from. “It wasn’t that bad, it was just bleeding a bit, and she told me to sit down, and she cleaned it and put a bandage on it. Then I asked why she was so mean to me. She asked why I asked so many questions. Then I was like, ‘oh, so it’s the questions? Why won’t you just answer them?’ then she was all like, ‘you ain’t the one answering them’, and then we kinda started arguing, and she yelled at me, told me to leave.”

“Did you?”

“Not at first. I was like, ‘no, I’m staying until you tell me,’ but she was all ‘I said leave!’ and she shoved me out the door! I don’t know where that came from.”

“Well, that sounds weird,” I say.

“I know. And then there wasn’t a note on my napkin this morning. Or at lunch. Or all day,” he pouts.

“What’s this napkin note thing?”

“She write me notes on my napkins. I didn’t tell you?” He looks up at me as I shake my head. He shrugs. “Well, she does. Or she used to anyway.”

“Are you…  _sad_  that she didn’t write you notes today?” I ask curiously.

“No. I’m just saying… I got used to them,” he says, getting defensive.

“You like them, don’t you?” I tease.

“No. Yes? I don’t know.”

“Do you or don’t you?”

“I don’t. I just got used to them.”

“Okay.”

There’s another loud boom of thunder, and Louis flinches. I wrap my arms around him, and feel his tense muscles start to relax. Before long, we’re both asleep.

Zayn’s Point of View

The next day, after feeding the horses in the morning, finishing the roof fixing in the afternoon, and cleaning up after that, we’ve got a few hours before we have to leave, so we’re just sitting on the couches in the bunkhouse. Well, the lads and I are. I don’t know where Laura’s gone off to. I saw her walk past us a little while ago, a book tucked under her arm, but I haven’t seen her since.

I stand, walking out the door quietly, so the lads won’t ask any questions. I stand on the porch, looking around for Laura, until I see her sitting on the grass over by the fence of the pasture where Rebel’s been turned out.

I walk over, trying to stay quiet and unnoticed, but once I get within a few feet of her, she stills, as if listening for something.

“Ya know, it ain’t nice ta sneak up on people, Zayn,” she says quietly.

“How did you know it was me?” I ask incredulously, walking over to stand next to her as she sits on the ground.

“Everybody’s got their own way o’ walkin’, an’ you scuff yer left foot e’ry time ya take a step with it,” she replies, her attention returning to the piece of paper in front of her. “Siddown, iff’n yer gonna.” She pats the grass next to her, and I sit down crosslegged.

“So what are you doing?” I ask. She looks up, staring forward for a few seconds at the big horse in front of her, then looks back down, making a few more lines on the paper in front of her.

“Drawin’,” she mutters.

Yankee jogs over, laying down next to me, putting his head in my lap. I reach a hand over to scratch behind his ear, and his tail begins swaying back and forth.

We sit there for awhile in the warm sun, Laura drawing, and me watching her.

It's quiet. But not an awkward quiet, instead it's a calming, relaxing quiet. The birds are singing, their song adding to the atmosphere.

Laura looks up every few seconds, then goes back to the paper. Her hand moves quickly, making lines appear, her thumb smudging a few of them, bringing the drawing to life.

The blue roan horse continues prancing around the pasture, unaware that he's being recreated on the paper in Laura lap.

The speed with which she's drawing her horse is amazing. There would be times when I'd look away for a few seconds, to watch Rebel roll in the dust, or to pet Yankee, and when I look back, there's always more lines, more of the horse on the page.

"A’right, I think - " she smudges one more line with her thumb, then erases another "- done."

I look over at it,  and my jaw drops.

"This is amazing!" I exclaim. It is. I can't see a single line out of place, it looks as if the horse on the page could jump out at any second.

"Thanks," she says, smiling. "It's nice ta have someone ta show these to who can talk back."

"Who do you usually show them to?"

"Mostly Yankee.  Sometimes Rebel. He us’lly just snorts at it though." She laughs, and I join her.

"Maybe that's his way of saying he likes it," I suggest.

"I ain’t never thought ‘bout it like that," she answers, smiling and looking at her big horse. I look at the drawing again.

"Is there anything you aren't good at?" I blurt without thinking. “I mean, you seem to be pretty good at everything you do…”

“I get what yer sayin’...” she says, thinking. “I ain’t good at losin’. I hate it. An’ I ain’t good at admittin’ when I’m wrong. Not that that ever happens.” She smiles, and I know that her last sentence was sarcastic. “I ain’t very ladylike either,” she says with a frown.

“Does that really matter?” I ask. “I mean, you seem to be doing alright the way you are.”

“I s’pose so. I ain’t never really been th’ kind ta like all that shit anyway. It ain’t me.”

“Then just be you. There’s only one Laura like you,” I tell her. She smiles, then looks over at me.

“Ya know Zayn, yer a’right,” she says with a grin, nudging my shoulder with her fist. “C’mon, we got stuff ta do.” She stands, pulling me up with her, the light glinting off of her necklace catching my eye.

“Where’d you get that?” I ask curiously.

“This?” she asks, running her thumb over the heart shaped pendant, “Daddy gave it to me. Said it was Mama’s.”

“Is it like a locket or something?”

She nods. “There ain’t nothin’ innit though. I a’ready looked,” she says, sounding disappointed.

Laura’s Point of View

We walk into the large barn, and the first thing I see is Jeremy’s girlfriend, Lori, and I frown. That little bitch doesn’t know when to stay home. I take a deep breath, deciding to try being polite to her. Maybe it’ll end better than the last time I talked to her.

“Laura! There ya are!” Jeremy shouts, walking over to me. That’s right, he likes my company better than yours.

Once he reaches me, he wraps his arms around me in a giant bear hug.

“So, we’re havin’ a party at our house tomorrow. You can bring yer guy friends iff’n ya want,” he mutters in my ear.

“Where’re yer folks goin’?” I ask. The Dillons only throw parties when their parents are gone for the weekend, and usually when they’ve taken the two younger siblings with them.

“Up ta th’ cabin, makin’ sure it’s set fer the winter. They’ll be gone all weekend,” he smiles.

“Who all’s gonna be there?” I ask.

“I told Rob, iff’n that’s what ya wanna know,” he laughs, punching my arm.

“He ain’t th’ only person I ‘as wantin’ ta know ‘bout,” I say, lying through my teeth. Jeremy, of course, sees right through it, but doesn’t make a fuss about it.

“Well, th’ Wilder’s’re comin’, and I asked Annie, but she said ‘er parents wouldn’t let ‘er. There’s a couple o’ th’ guys who said they’re comin’.”

“Will princess Lori be there?” I ask with fake enthusiasm.

“Yeah, course she will.”

“Try ta keep th’ face-eatin’ ta a minimum this time. Ya nearly killed yer brother last time.”  

Jeremy and Lori had been a little too occupied with each other and walked into the wrong room, and when Kyle went to go to bed, he saw things he probably never wanted to see ever again.

“I’ll try. ‘S long ‘s you don’t get too crazy with th’ drinkin’.”

I roll my eyes. “Ya know that ain’t a promise I can make, Jerbear.”

“I know. At least try ta keep yerself under control though.” He throws me a smile, then walks over to where the two Schmidt brothers are setting up their stuff.

“So what was that about?” Harry asks.

“ ‘E’s havin’ a party tamarra. Folks’re gone fer th’ weekend,” I answer. “Told me I could bring ya’ll with me.”

“Really?” Niall asks.

“Yeah, iff’n ya’ll wanna go. Truck’s leavin’ at ten tamarra.”

“What kind of party are we talking about?” Liam asks.

“Th’ usu’al. Drinkin’, music, dancin’, maybe settin’ stuff on fire. Prolly gonna be a bonfire in th’ backyard ‘r somethin’ like that,” I reply.

I feel a tap on my shoulder, and turn around.

“Erica!” I say happily, giving her a hug.

“Hey,” she replies. “You goin’ tomorrow?”

I nod. “Yep. Ya know me, always up fer a good time.”

“Are you bringin’ them?” she asks, quietly, nodding toward the five guys sitting at the table behind me.

“What’s it matter?” I ask curiously.

Her face gets red, something I didn’t expect. “It don’t, I was just curious,” she answers, looking down at her feet.

I smile. “Yeah, I think Liam’s goin’,” I say with a smirk.

She looks up at me excitedly. “Is he reall- hey!” Suddenly she scowls up at me, crossing her arms. “I mean, I wanted ta know if you was bringin’  _all_  of ‘em, not… not  _just_  Liam.”

“ ‘S a’right, I won’t say nothin’,” I laugh.

“An’ I’ve got a boyfriend. I don’t think of ‘im like that,” she adds. I bite my tongue, stopping myself from telling her that her boyfriend is a jackass and that she could do so much better. Instead I just nod, keeping my opinion to myself. Not something that I do very often.

“Erica, hey!” I hear Liam greet from behind me. The shorter girl’s face lights up, and she walks over to him, striking up a conversation quickly.

“Hey you,” a voice says from behind me.

“Hey yerself,” I reply, turning around to face Amy. “How’ve you been?”

“A’right, I guess,” she answers, looking around.

“ ‘E jus’ walked that way,” I tell her, referring to Jeremy.

Amy’s always had a thing for the tall blonde, ever since I’ve known her anyway. Even through all his girlfriends. They were in the same graduating class, a year ahead of me, but he never really seemed to notice her that way. His loss.

“I wasn’t…” she trails off once she sees the look I give her. “fine, I was.”

“Yer fine. Jus’ don’t let th’ little woman catch ya.”

“What’s she gonna do? Yip at me?” Amy laughs.

One thing that we’ve always been good at is poking fun at people’s personalities. Especially Jeremy’s girlfriends. Lori has been the worst though. And I can’t say that I’m sorry for it. She talks so much shit about us that it only seems right to do it back. We don’t go too far with it, just the occasional chihuahua joke here and there, and a few cracks at how short she is. Nothing too serious.

“So how’re you doin’?”

I shrug. “ ‘M a’right.”

“How’re you gettin’ along with all them guys?”

I sigh, rolling my eyes. We’re gettin’ along, I guess. They ain’t too bad.”

“Uh huh…” she says, as if she’s expecting me to say more. “And?”

“An’ nothin’. That’s it,” I reply with a shrug. There’s nothing really going on between any of us. I’m not looking to start anything like that with someone I’m probably never going to see again after this summer.

“Sure…”

Niall’s Point of View

It’s the last song of the night, and Laura, Jeremy and Kyle are on stage. The song is a loud one, everyone is jumping up and down to the beat, excited. Even Ann, who was sitting next to me, is now somewhere in the crowd, I lost sight of her when the song started.

Suddenly she’s next to me, pulling me up with her, and into the middle of the large group of people, just as Jeremy starts singing.

**She wore a pink 'Bama do-rag, smackin' on Juicy Fruit**

**Red clay stickin' to her Timberland boots**

**A tight white t-shirt showin' off her Talledega tan**

**I said darlin' where you from**

**She said,**

Laura leans into her microphone, joining her voice with his.

**_‘watch your tongue do you really have to ask’_ **

Everyone starts screaming, and even though I’ve been to quite a few concerts before, I find myself almost plugging my ears. They must really like this song. I soon find out why as I keep listening.

**_I'm from Ala-Freakin-Bama_ **

**_Ala-Freakin-Bama_ **

**_Tell me what's it to ya_ **

**_Ala-Freakin-Bama_ **

**_'Bama_ **

I can feel the energy bouncing off of everyone here, and it’s contagious, affecting even me. I look over at Ann, to see her bouncing up and down with the beat,  wide smile on her face as she sings along.

**I said slow down sister, don't mean to make you mad**

**I grew up on Skynyrd and I'm a Bear Bryant fan**

**I can roll with the flow**

**Baby, you can roll with the tide**

**I don't mind if you do**

**I think it's kinda cute the way you say it with pride**

**When you say**

**Ala-Freakin-Bama (** **_Ala-Freakin-Bama_ ** **)**

**Ala-Freakin-Bama (** **_Ala-Freakin-Bama_ ** **)**

**From her boots to her bandana**

**She screams Ala-Freakin-Bama**

**_'Bama_ **

Kyle steps forward, like he always does, playing the complex-sounding guitar solo with ease. I can see the intense look on his face from how close I am, he looks really into it.

**Yeah, I can roll with the flow**

**Baby, you can roll with the tide**

**I don't mind if you do**

**I actually think it's kind of cute**

**The way you say it with pride**

Jeremy makes a motion with his hands, encouraging the crowd.

**Say it for me baby**

**Ala-Freakin-Bama**  ( _Ala-Freakin-Bama_ )

 **Ala-Freakin-Bama**  ( _Ala-Freakin-Bama_ )

**Baby, open of a can of Ala-Freakin-Bama,**

**Ala-Freakin-Bama**  ( _Roll Tide Roll_ )

**Ala-Freakin-Bama (** **_Roll Tide Roll)_ **

**Ala-Freakin-Bama (** **_Roll Tide Roll)_ **

**Baby, open up a can of Ala-Freakin-Bama,**

**Ala-Freakin-Bama**

**‘Bama**

_Hey!_

The shouts from the crowd get so loud that I can’t hear Jeremy or Laura as they sing the last verse.

_Ala-Freakin-Bama (Roll Tide Roll)_

_Ala-Freakin-Bama (Roll Tide Roll)_

_Ala-Freakin-Bama (Roll Tide Roll)_

_Ala-Freakin-Bama!_

 “Thank you! Goodnight Ev’rybody!” I hear Jeremy shout, then the three friends jump off of the stage, taking their stuff back out to their trucks.

“So, how was that?” Ann asks.

“What?” I joke, “I can’t hear you!”

She giggles, and looks down. I look down too, and see what she’s looking at.

I was holding her hand this whole time and I didn’t even realize it.

She looks back up at me the same time that I look up at her, and I find myself lost in her dark eyes. They’re the same color as Laura’s, but somehow Ann’s seen more happy, more alive in my mind. Especially now.

“Annie!” a voice calls, snapping both of us out of our little bubble. Ann blinks several times, looking around for whoever shouted for her.

“I guess I’ll see ya around?” she asks, a small smile on her face.

“Yeah, I’ll see you,” I reply. She reluctantly lets go of my hand, waving as she walks away.

“Get it Niall!” I hear Louis shout from behind me, and before I know it, I’m tackled by the rest of the lads, each of them taking turns pounding me on the back, saying congratulations. I just smile, hoping that this will last.


	21. Chapter 21

Niall’s Point of View

The next day, after the stalls are all mucked out, the chores done and the horses fed, supper eaten and everyone has cleaned up, the lads, Laura and I pile into the rusty pickup truck in the driveway, and drive off to the Dillon’s. All five of us guys have changed into clothes that we’d normally wear when we go clubbing - skinny jeans and tight shirts.

Laura is wearing a pair of tight jeans and a red plaid shirt, tied just under her ribs. Her hair is up in a braid, and a pair of red boots cover her feet. I almost caught myself staring when she came down the stairs. She looks amazing.

The windows of the truck are open as we roll down the dark road, the night air threatening to mess up my hair that took me ten minutes to fix just right.

When we arrive at the Dillon’s, there are a few pickup trucks parked on the lawn, belonging to the other people who are already there, obviously. As the engine of the truck cuts out, the sound of the bass coming from inside the house reaches my ears, and we all climb out of the truck, Laura tucking the key into the pocket in the front of her jeans.

“A’right, th’ truck don’t leave here, don’t go upstairs, an’ don’t do nothin’ stupid,” she tells us as we walk up the front porch steps.  

“Are we going back to the ranch tonight, or..?” Liam asks.

Laura shrugs. “Depends on how much I drink. Iff’n ya don’t see me after about two, we’re stayin’ here. You can crash on the couches ‘r somethin’, Jeremy ain’t gonna care. We jus’ gotta be back in time ta do chores in th’ mornin’.”

We walk through the door, and Laura points out where the bathroom is and where the drinks are, and then the lads and I are left on our own as Laura weaves her way through the crowd, away from us.

“So, what do we do?” Louis asks, looking at the rest of us.

“I don’t know about you, but I want something to drink,” I say, making my way toward the kitchen, where Laura said the coolers were. On my way there, I accidentally bump into someone.

“I’m sorry,” I apologise, and keep walking, finally making it to the kitchen, where I grab a beer out of one of the many coolers along the counter, making my way back to the rest of the lads.

All five of us are a bit out of our element, not quite knowing what to do with ourselves, unfamiliar with the surroundings. So we stay together, leaning against the wall as we watch everyone around the room, just observing.

There’s a tall blonde girl who keeps glancing over at us, but I pretend not to notice, too busy trying to figure out what I’m supposed to do. Normally we would all be dancing, but there doesn’t seem to be an actual place that everyone is gravitating toward. They’re kind of spread out all over the first floor of the house, some talking, a few dancing, but most of them seem to be watching.

Is that what people do here? Do they just watch everyone around them?

Laura’s Point of View

I’m standing at the edge of the table, my arms crossed as I stare at Ashley and Rob. She’s all over him, and I really want to punch her in the face. He’s obviously uncomfortable with you hanging on him like that, why don’t you just leave him alone? Maybe he doesn’t like you like that.

“Hey Lulu,” I hear a deep voice say from behind me. I turn around to see Kyle standing there.

“Hey,” I reply with a smile, accepting the red solo cup he hands me. “What’s this?”

“New mix. Got some Jack and José in there, with somethin’ else that ain’t got a label,” he replies, watching as I take a drink. I nod as I pull the cup away from my face, feeling the burn as it slides down my throat. This shit’s good.

“ ‘T’s a’right,” I say, smiling as he grins.

“So how’ve ya been?’ he asks.

“Pretty good, I s’pose. Ain’t had much goin’ on fer awhile,” I answer, taking another sip. “This shit is  _good_.”

Normally it takes awhile for a drink to have an effect on me, but this one’s already got me feeling warm and happy. Maybe it’s the two shots of tequila I drank before it helping out, but this one just takes the pie. Cake. I meant cake.

Maybe it’s not so bad that Ashley’s all over Rob, I mean, he’ll get tired of it eventually and come find  _me_ , right? Or I could go find someone else to talk to… maybe?

“So, how’ve you been?” I ask Kyle, taking another drink of my drink. Ha, I said drink twice. I’m funny.

“ ‘M a’right,” he says with a shrug.

Then someone calls his name, and he walks off somewhere, leaving me with my thoughts. Maybe I should go make sure the guys are still alive. Yeah. I’ll be nice and go see how they are. After I get myself another one of these.

Harry's Point of View

I see the red shirt she’s wearing before I actually see Laura, striding over to the lads and I as we sit on the couches in the living room.  There’s a slight wobble in her right leg, but other than that she looks completely normal. A red cup is clutched in her hand, full of alcohol no doubt.

She sits down on the armrest of the couch, greeting us with a “hey.”

“Hey,” I reply.

We sit there in silence for a while. Then Laura speaks again.

“Ya’ll’re borin’. D’ya use’ly jus’ sit ‘round when ya go ta parties?”

“No. We usually dance and stuff… but there isn’t much of that going on,” I answer.

“That shits downstairs, in th’ basement,” Laura informs me. So that’s where everyone is at. She offers her cup to me. “Ya wan’a drink?”

“What’s in it?” I ask. She shrugs.

“I dunno, but it’s good as  _fuck_ ,” she says, tipping it back.

“I’ll try some, I guess,” I say, taking the cup when Laura hands it to me. I take a drink of the cool liquid, the taste lingering in my mouth after I swallow it.

“Where’d you get it?” I ask, handing the cup back.

“Kylie-bear made it fer me,” she says with a smile, her words a little slurred. How many has she had? Her dark eyes seem shinier than usual, whether that’s from the alcohol or from being able to let loose for awhile, I can’t tell. But whatever it is, she looks more alive, more excited. “Ya want some?”

I chuckle. “I just had some.”

She looks at me for a second, confused. Then it seems to click in her brain, and she laughs.

“Yer silly,” she says, poking my cheek. “I meant d’ya want one o’ yer own?”

I shake my head. “Nah, I’ll just keep stealing yours.” She laughs, then takes another sip, looking around the room.

“Ya wanna go dance?” she asks next.

I shrug. “Alright.” This should be fun.

A few hours and lots of drinks later, Laura and I are dancing crazily in the basement, along with ten or so other people. Well, not exactly dancing. More like waving our arms everywhere like we don’t care and laughing at everything.

The song that’s playing right now is unfamiliar to me, but Laura seems to know every word, shouting them out along with some other people in the room.

“Now a Red Solo cup ‘s th’ best receptacle fer barbecues, tailgates, fairs an’ festivals, an’  _you_  sir,” Laura slurs, poking my chest, “do not have a pair o’ testicles if you prefer drinkin’ from glass!”

She starts laughing that contagious laugh of hers, grabbing ahold of my arm to hold herself up as she takes another drink out of her cup.

“Red solo cup! I lift you up!” she shouts. “Let’s have a partyyyyy!”

Suddenly she’s really close, her face inches away from mine.

“Why’s yer hair so curly?” she asks, giggling.

I shrug. “I dunno. It’s always been like that.”

“Oh. It’s  _puurrrdyyy_ ,” she says, drawing out her words.

“Thanks, love,” I answer, putting an arm out to steady her as she wobbles a little. “Do you want to go sit down?”

She nods, and we stumble over to a table, hopping onto it, Laura swinging her legs back and forth, humming a song quietly as she sips her drink. I take the time, since she’s not looking at me, to look at her.

Some pieces of hair have come loose, falling out of the braid that lays over her shoulder, and framing her face, which is practically glowing in the lighting of the basement. Her red shirt clings to her lean body, the sleeves rolled up to just above her elbows and the bottom tied just under her ribs, exposing her toned stomach.

Her skin looks so soft, I want to run my hands over it, but I stay where I am, resisting the urge because I don’t know how she’ll react, whether she’ll beat my ass for it or not. There’s a dark line on her back, just barely visible, peeking out from the bottom of her shirt, but I can’t tell if it’s a tattoo or a shadow from the angle I’m looking from.

Her jeans are probably the tightest things I’ve seen her wear, and that’s saying something, because her jeans are usually pretty tight, clinging to her legs in all the right places. She’s got a brown leather belt on, with carvings and engravings all over it, and a shiny silver belt buckle.

Her necklace hangs around her neck, the heart shaped pendant laying just above the neckline of her shirt.

“Watcha lookin’ at?” she asks, not looking at me.

My eyes snap up to her face, and she turns her head to face me. “Nothing…. nothing,” I stutter.

“Ya sure?” she asks.

“Where’d you get your necklace?” I ask, trying to change the subject.

“Daddy gave it ta me,” she answers, her drunken state making it harder to understand her. “It was Mama’s,” she adds quietly.

“Do you miss her?” I ask softly.

She shrugs. “Never really knew ‘er. Weren’t much ta miss.”

“So you don’t remember her at all?”

Laura shakes her head. “Nope. I remember ‘er voice, but even that ain’t always too clear.”

While we’ve been talking, Laura’s moved closer to me, scooting over on the table until she’s right next to me. I can feel the warmth radiating from her body through my shirt.

“Hey Harry?” she asks, in that darn drawl that makes my stomach feel weird.

“Hmm?” I ask, looking over at her. She’s right in my face again, looking at me with those huge brown eyes. This time they look different though. They’re sparkly, like she’s got something up her sleeve that I don’t know about.

“I dunno,” she giggles. “Fergot.”

She reaches up to poke my nose again, even though hers is almost touching it. She watches her finger, her eyes crossing.

“You’re silly, Laura,” I tell her.

“Well, you stink,” she says, crossing her arms. “Should take that outside.”

"Wha-” I start, but she cuts me off.

“Ya wanna go outside? Th’ stars’re real perdy,” she says excitedly.

“Okay.” I nod.

Before I can blink, she’s grabbing my hand and pulling me back up the stairs, then through the crowd of people, weaving through them to get to the door.

"Hey, watch it!" I hear someone shout after I accidentally bump into them.

"Sorry!" I call back, not wanting to be rude. I turn back to look where I'm going, and run into another person.

This one, however, isn't so nice about it.

"What the- ?" He says, obviously angry. He looks at me as I pull Laura to a stop so I can apologise.

"Hey man, I'm -" I can't finish my sentence. He punches me in the nose, sending me reeling backward into Laura.  

"Son of a -"

It's not me that says it, it's Laura. She stands me on my feet, looking to make sure I'm alright before stalking over to the guy.

She taps him on the shoulder, and once he turns around, she balls up her fist and clocks him right in the face. Judging by his expression of confusion and pain, he wasn't expecting it.

"You little -" He tries to take a swing at her, but she ducks, avoiding the hit. Then she hits his stomach, making him stumble backward. I didn't think she could hit that hard. He swings again, catching her shoulder with his fist. She stumbles a little, then lunges for him, swinging with both fists.

He tries to catch her arms and stop her, but she's too quick, landing hits all over his stomach. He staggers back, then falls, Laura going down with him.

She sits on his stomach, just laying into him. Then he suddenly swings, hitting her jaw and knocking her off of him. She lands on her back, barely catching herself before her head hits the floor.

As she sits up, Laura turns her head to one side, spitting blood out of her mouth before wiping her lips with the back of her hand. She then sits up, prepared to lunge for him again.

That’s when Jeremy and Kyle show up, grabbing ahold of both of them and keeping them from killing each other.

“Laura, what happened?” Jeremy asks.

“ ‘E’s bein’ an ass,” she answers, nodding toward the guy struggling against Jeremy’s hold. “So ‘m gonna kick ‘is.”

“Not this time, tiger,” Kyle says with a grin, pulling her toward the bathroom, “let’s get you cleaned up." She keeps kicking and trying to rid herself of his hands, wanting to finish what she started.

I watch her go, then go back to the lads, sitting back on the couches with them.

“Where have you been?” Liam asks.

“I was with Laura,” I answer.

“With Laura like, hanging out, or  _with_  Laura?” Niall asks, wiggling his eyebrows.

I shake my head. “We were just hanging out. Then she got in a fight and Kyle took her in the bathroom.”

“What? She got in a fight?” Liam asks. I nod.

“Yeah. Beat the guy up, his nose looks like it’s broken.”

“What? That’s crazy,” Louis scoffs. “Girls can’t beat up guys.”

“Well, see for yourself, he’s right there.” I point over to the tall brunette, who’s walking over to the kitchen, probably going to clean his face up. There's a clear bruise forming along his jaw, and the way he's holding onto his stomach with one arm leads me to believe that Laura inflicted some damage there too.

“Wow,” Zayn says. “Must have been a serious fight. How’s Laura?”

“She looked fine to me. The only real hit he got on her was her shoulder.”

Laura’s Point of View

“I ‘as doin’ fine, ya didn’t haveta come get me,” I grumble as I sit on the counter in the bathroom.

Kyle doesn’t answer, he just dabs my split lip with the wet rag, wiping the blood off.

“I ‘as doin’ good too. Ya shoulda seen it. I had ‘im on th’ ground, an-”

“Lulu, stop moving, yer makin’ this tough,” Kyle laughs. I huff, then sit in silence, my arms crossed over my chest, which makes Kyle laugh even more.

He dabs the rag across my chin, trying to be gentle, even though it’s not his forte. His big, rough hands were made to work, not clean, and it shows. But he can be soft when he wants to be. It just doesn’t happen very often, but when it does, it’s mostly when he’s around me, though I have absolutely no clue why. I’ve told him that I can handle it, to just act like he does with his brother, but he’s always different around me.

“Ya done?” I ask when he turns on the sink to rinse the blood off of the cloth.

“Not quite,” he answers. “Lemme check yer teeth. Make sure ya didn’t lose any.”

I roll my eyes, but open my mouth, letting him see that I still have all my teeth. Once he’s satisfied that I don’t need to go to the dentist, he taps my nose with an “okay, ‘m done now.”

“Thanks Kylie-bear,” I coo, knowing he secretly likes the nickname but won’t admit it.

“Lulu,” he groans.

“Hmm?” I hum, grinning up at him.

He shakes his head with a smile. “I’ll let that’n go cause yer drunk, silly.”

“Psshhhh,” I say, waving him off, “I ain’t drunk yet, my nose ain’t even numb yet, see?” I start tapping my nose, even though I can’t feel it, to prove my point.

“That’s yer lip, Lulu,” Kyle laughs.

“No s’not,” I giggle, nudging his shoulder with my fist. “This ‘s my lip.”

“And  _that’s_  yer chin,” he tells me. “maybe we should get ya ta bed.”

“But I ain’t sleepy,” I say, contradicting myself when I yawn right after.

“Really?” Kyle asks. “How ‘bout you go upstairs? You can stay in my room iff’n ya want.”

“But I don’t wanna sleep!” I complain, pouting.

He stands right in front of me with his arms crossed, a serious look on his face.

“Do I need ta call yer father?” Damn it, he pulled the Daddy card.

As far as I know, he thinks I’m just spending the night at the Dillon’s, and nothing about a party or me getting drunk. He doesn’t know how bad I get, but he’s alright with me drinking as long as I keep it under control. It’s a thing everyone does out here, it’s almost like we’ve got it ingrained in our DNA. It always takes a few drinks before it really starts to hit me, but once I get past that, it’s all downhill.

I sigh, looking down. “No, I s’pose ‘ll go ta bed.”

“Good,” he says, turning to the door.

“One condition,” I say, stopping him in his tracks. He turns around, looking at me and waiting for me to tell him. “Carry me, I ain’t walkin’.”

I see him grin, then I’m thrown over his shoulder, and he starts walking, out the door and through the crowd of people.

“Kylie-bear! Ev’rythin’s upside down!” I shout, laughing loudly afterward.

“Laura!” I hear a voice call. Who the hell is that?

“What?” I giggle, turning to look for who called me. I see dark hair and brown eyes. Wait a second, who is this guy? Why is he making me think of Erica?

“Where are you going?” he asks.

“Why d’ya wanna know? Who’re you again?” I ask.

“Liam. I’m Liam.” Oooooohhh, Liam!

“Kylie-bear says I need ta sleep, so I guess that’s where ‘m goin’?” I tap on Kyle’s back, trying to get his attention. “Kylie-bear, where’re ya takin’ me?”

“Ta bed. She needs ta sleep it off,” he tells Liam, who nods. "Ya’ll can stay on th’ couches iff’n ya want. There’s pull-out beds under ‘em.”

I hear them say some other stuff to each other, but I’m too busy trying to shoot Louis with the hair tie that I pulled off the bottom of my braid. Since I’m upside down, it’s harder to aim, but I think I’ve got it.

Just as I let go, Kyle starts moving again, and his leg bumps my hand, making me miss and hit Louis’ arm instead of dead center on his chest, where I’d been aiming. He jumps nonetheless, still giving me the satisfaction of having hit him, but it’s not the same.

“Damn it, Kyle! Ya made me miss!” I say as he starts up the stairs. I can feel my hair falling out of it’s braid, nearly dragging on the floor behind me.

“You’ll be a’right,” he replies, setting me on my feet just outside of his room. “Go lay down, I’ll be up in a while.”

I nod, then walk through the door.

“Night night Kylie-bear,” I say, hearing him say goodnight before I shut the door.

This usually happens too. Whenever I get drunk or something, even though I could probably still make it home, I always stay over at the Dillon’s. Sometimes I stay in Jeremy’s room, but it’s mostly Kyle’s. I just curl up in one of his sweatshirts and fall asleep.

Speaking of sweatshirts, where’s the one that I hid last time? I look under the bed, and pull out a huge grey sweater, one that even Kyle doesn’t wear.

I shrug, this’ll do. I unbutton my shirt, sliding it off before unbuckling my belt and jeans, sliding out of them and my boots before pulling the sweater over my head and crawling into bed. I pull the covers over me, then snuggle into one of the pillows, closing my eyes.

3rd person Point of View

When Kyle finally gets back upstairs, it’s around three in the morning. The last of the people that are leaving finally walked out the door, leaving the house a mess. He really doesn’t want to clean anything up right now, so he’s going to bed.

He hasn’t seen Jeremy since he helped break up that fight, and judging by the sounds coming from his older brother’s room, it isn’t hard to tell that he’s busy with Lori.

Tired and red eyed, Kyle pushes open the door to his room, walking in and closing it behind himself. Even though it’s dark, he can still make out the shape of Laura’s body under the blankets, and he smiles.

It’s been three years, seven months and forty six days since he met her, not that he’s counting. Every day that he’s seen her has been brighter somehow, like she brings a contagious happiness with her, always instantly lifting his usually gloomy mood.

But he knows she’ll never go for him. She thinks of him as a little brother, and he knows it. But that doesn’t stop his stomach from jumping into his throat every time he sees her face, or hears her beautiful laugh.

He pulls his shirt off, exchanging his jeans for a pair of basketball shorts, then pulls back the covers.

“Fuckin’ hell, woman,” he mutters. Laura’s laying there, wearing a sweater that he could never pull off, but she somehow makes it look adorable. The sleeves are too long, the excess fabric of the sweater swallowing her lean frame, making her appear small. Her hair is fanned out on the pillows, her mouth hanging open as she sleeps, snoring quietly.

He could have seen that without pulling the covers back. But he couldn’t see that she hadn’t put any pants on, her long legs laying bare against the sheets. He’s had one too many dreams about those legs. Wrapped around him, or tangling with his, or slung over his shoulders…

Kyle shakes his head before he can think of anything further. No sense in dwelling on things that will never happen. No matter how much he wishes they would. He lets out a sigh.

As he crawls in behind her, all he can think is that it’s going to be a long night.


	22. Chapter 22

Liam’s Point of View

I wake up the next morning with a weight on my chest and a cramp in my leg. This pull out bed is less than comfortable.

Wait a second, where am I?

I quickly sit up, looking around. I’m in a house, obviously. The rest of the lads are laying around on the couches throughout the room, which is quite messy.

I feel something move next to me, and look down to see Erica laying there, her head on my lap. How did she get there?

I see Laura walk into the room, wearing the same clothes as yesterday, except this time her shirt is tucked into her jeans. She has a cup in each of her hands, and takes a sip out of one of them before flinging the water inside onto Louis' face. He wakes with a start, startling Harry, who was laying next to him.

“What the -?” he mutters, running a hand down his face. Laura walks right on past him, tossing the water from the other cup onto Zayn and Niall, who groan and roll over.

“Get up, we gotta go,” is all she says. She looks over at me, seeing that I’m up. When she sees Erica laying next to me, her eyebrows go up. She doesn’t say anything, but I get the feeling that she’s assuming we did something.I shake my head, but she’s already out the door, walking into another room.

“What time is it?” Harry groans. I pull my phone off of the end table next to the couch and check the time.

“Eight thirty.”

“Nooo… too early,” he whines, burrowing under Louis, trying to go back to sleep.

“Get off me, you tosser,” Louis grumbles, shaking the water out of his hair. “Worst wake up call ever.”

“ ‘S your own fault,” Harry mumbles back. “If you didn’t drink so much…”

“Shut up,” Niall groans, “my head hurts.”

Laura walks back in, twirling her keys around her finger, a water bottle in her other hand.

“C’mon, we gotta go,” she says, thankfully being quieter than normal. I didn’t have that much to drink last night, but I know the rest of the lads may have gone a bit overboard.

She walks over to where Zayn is still sleeping, and nudges him with her knee.

“Zayn, c’mon,” she says. When he doesn’t respond, she leans over, shaking his shoulder gently. “Sugar, you can sleep when we get home, c’mon,” she says softly in his ear, pulling at his arm. He sits up, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

What the -? How’d she get him to wake up so quick and quiet like that? It usually takes me a good hour or so to get him to open his eyes. It’s cause she’s a girl, isn’t it? Girls have a way of getting people to do what they want.

I stand, gently setting Erica’s head down on a pillow and covering her with a blanket. I assume she’ll be alright, she’s probably been here before.  When I walk out to the kitchen, Laura’s already coaxed Zayn out of his sleepy daze, and into the truck.

“Thank you for letting us stay,” I say when I see Jeremy. The tall guy has become more of a friend than I thought he would at first. “It was very nice of you.”

“No problem. Ya’ll’re always welcome,” he says with a wide grin. “Any friends ‘o Laura’s ‘re friends o’ mine.”

“Thank you,” I say with a smile, following Louis out the door. Niall and Harry are climbing into the truck, complaining about having to sit next to Zayn, because they know he’s going to fall asleep and lean on one of them.

“Hey, ‘t’s only ‘bout five minutes. Yer gonna live,” Laura says from the driver’s seat. I climb in behind Louis, who sits in the middle between Laura and I.

“Might wanna cover yer ears,” Laura mutters before starting the engine. I forgot how loud her truck is, and with the headache I’ve got, it’s only making it worse. I can hear Niall groaning in the back, and I look back to see him holding his head in his hands, trying to block out the noise.

Laura shifts the truck into drive, and pulls out of the driveway, spinning the tires and slinging gravel, black smoke billowing out of the smokestacks on the back of the cab.

“Was that really necessary?” Louis asks sarcastically. Laura doesn’t answer, she just turns on the radio, rolling down her window. I see Louis roll his eyes, shaking his head and muttering to himself.

What happened there?

“Laura?” I hear Harry call from the back.

“What?”

“I’m thirsty.”

She sighs, tossing the water bottle she had grabbed back to him.

“Thank you,” he says, and Laura hums in response.

“Laura?” Zayn asks a moment later, his voice a hoarse whisper. “Can you turn down the radio?”

“Sure.” She reaches over, lowering the volume of the music by a bit.

“Can you change the  _station_? I hate this song,” Louis whines. Laura doesn’t listen, moving her hand away from the knobs on the dashboard and placing it on the gear shifter once again.

The rest of the drive is quiet, but my head is swirling, and not just because I’m wondering what happened with Louis and Laura. By the time we get back, I’ve got a splitting headache, and all I want to do is sleep in complete darkness.

After the truck is parked and the engine is shut off, Laura tells us to go inside and get some sleep, she’ll feed the horses.

I stumble up the stairs and into my room, falling into bed and pulling the blankets over my head before falling asleep.

Laura’s Point of View

I sit down on a bale of hay, finally done with my chores for the day. I almost wanted to tell the guys to do some of this, but then they were so hungover that I felt bad, so I just let them sleep. I’m sure they would have complained if I made them do anything else. Especially Louis. I’ve never met a guy who whines so much, my goodness. I can’t stand it, not one bit. I was so close to just whacking him upside the head when we were in the truck. He’s just so stubborn.

Then again, I am too. Maybe that’s why we don’t get along. But it doesn’t matter, I’m fine with it. It’s not any inconvenience to me. It’ll just make it that much easier to say goodbye when the time comes.

Yankee comes trotting into the tack room, hopping up onto the bale next to me and laying his big head in my lap. I smile, then move my hand to scratch behind his ears. His fluffy tail starts swinging back and forth across the bale, his tongue lolling out to one side.

“Bet you don’t haveta worry ‘bout whiney guys, do ya?” I ask him, and as if he understands, my big dog nods his head up and down. I smile and shake my head. “C’mon, let’s go shoot stuff.”

He jumps up, looking almost as excited as I feel, and follows me out to the old barn, where I store my bow and arrows. I’ve got several targets set up around the inside of the large building, just for when I feel like blowing off some steam by practicing my aim. Yankee sits at my feet as I attach the quiver to the belt loop on my right side, holding the bow in my left hand.

I pull an arrow out, nocking it onto the string of the bow before setting my feet, shoulder width apart, just like Daddy taught me. I raise the bow, pulling the string back, anchoring my hand at the corner of my mouth, feeling the pull of the bow in my shoulder and upper arm. I take a deep breath, aiming for the middle of the target in front of me, then let go, loosing the arrow and holding my stance as it flies through the air, piercing through the old sackcloth and sticking into center of the red circle.

I pull out another arrow, turning to aim at a different target to my left. I let the arrow fly, hitting the target dead center. Shot after shot, I begin to fire the arrows faster, spinning in a circle and shooting at all the targets around the barn. I hear a noise behind me, and whirl around, pulling the last arrow back and preparing to fire.

“Sorry! It’s just me!” Zayn says, throwing up his hands, “I didn’t mean to scare you, sorry!”

“God dammit boy,” I curse, lowering my bow. “Don’t do that! I’d rather not be wanted fer murder.”

“Sorry,” he apologizes again.

“Stop sayin’ yer sorry, I didn’t actually kill ya, yer fine. Whaddya want?”

“I woke up and got bored, and I was wondering where you went…” he admits, nudging at a rock with the toe of his shoe.

“An’ I’m more entertainin’ than whatever you was doin’?” I ask. “ ‘M jus’ shootin’ stuff.”

He shrugs.

“You can watch, I guess, but stay in one spot. I don’t wanna shoot ya by mistake.” He nods, then sits on one of the straw bales in the corner. I look at Yankee, then nod toward Zayn, silently telling the big dog to go sit by him and make sure he doesn’t go anywhere. He trots over to Zayn as I walk around to the targets, pulling the arrows out and putting them back into the quiver that bumps against my leg as I walk.

Once I’ve got them all, I stand in the middle again, trying to ignore the curious pair of brown eyes that watch my every move. I nock an arrow, pulling the bow up to aim again, and take a deep breath, letting it out as I let the arrow fly. Another perfect shot. Practice really does pay off.  

Liam’s Point of View

Laura’s been gone for a few hours now, at volleyball practice. The lads and I have been watching TV, catching up with our families, and we may or may not have done a few twitcams for the fans, just so that they know we haven’t died or anything.

It’s around seven when I hear Laura’s truck pull into the driveway. The engine cuts out, and I wait for the familiar sound of her boots on the wooden steps. But I don’t hear it.

After about five minutes, my phone rings, gaining mine and the rest of the lad’s attention. I pick it up, surprised to see Laura’s name on the screen.

“Hello?” I say, putting the phone up to my ear.

“Liam? Could ya come outside fer a minute?”

“Sure. I’ll be right out.” I get up, walking over to the door, the lads giving me strange looks. I shrug. I don’t know what she wants any more than they do.

As I step out onto the porch, I look around for Laura, but I can’t find her anywhere.   
“Where are you, love?” I say into the phone.

“In my truck.”

I walk over toward the fence, where the rusty vehicle is parked, and see her sitting in the driver’s seat, the door open. She’s still in her practice clothes - a blue shirt, cut so the sides are open, giving me a view of her tanned stomach and black sports bra, and some black spandex shorts that expose quite a bit of her long legs. Her hair is up in a french braid, flipped over her shoulder.

“What’s up?” I ask, putting my phone into my pocket.

“Well, I um… kinda twisted my ankle at practice, an it hurts a lil - well, a lot - ta walk on, so I was wonderin’... could ya maybe carry me inside?” she asks.

“Course, c’mere,” I say with a smile, holding out my arms for her to slide into. She leans out of the truck and lets me wrap an arm around her back, and the other under her knees, then she slides off of the seat, putting all her weight on me.

“Am I too heavy?” she asks almost sarcastically, wrapping one arm around my neck and grabbing her bag with the other.

I shake my head. “Nope. Light as a feather,” I reply, starting to walk back to the bunkhouse.

“Shoulda figgered you’d say somethin’ like that,” she says with a laugh.

“Well, you are. I’m just telling the truth,” I tell her as I walk up the steps and through the door. She drops her bag by the kitchen counter.

“Can ya put me on th’ couch, please?” she requests just as the other lads turn around. I set her down on the couch, careful not to bump her ankle on anything. “An’ could ya get me a bag o’ ice please?” I walk over to the fridge and fill a Ziploc bag with ice cubes, bringing back to her.

“Thanks,” she says as she takes it, setting it on the floor while she pulls her boots off.

“What happened?” Zayn asks.

“Landed on a ball, twisted my ankle,” she replies, tugging at her boot. The left one slides right off, but when she tries to pull the right one off, she grits her teeth, hissing in pain.

“Easy love, what’s wrong?” Harry asks.

“Ankle musta swelled up. Can somebody pull my boot off, please?” We all look at each other, then at Harry, who’s closest to her feet.

“It’s gonna make it worse th’ longer ya wait,” she tells him calmly. Harry nods, wrapping his large hands around her boot. He looks up at her, unsure.

“Just pull it off?” She nods, and he starts pulling slowly. About halfway there, she hisses again, and he stops.

“I can’t do this. I can’t hurt you,” he says.

“It hurts more now, dammit!” she growls. “Don’t jus’ stop in th’ middle!”

“For fuck’s sake,” Louis groans, grabbing ahold of the boot and pulling it right off, dropping it on the floor next to the other one, his eyes fixed on her bruised ankle.

It looks pretty bad. Swollen, and almost completely black and blue.

“Ice. Ankle. Por favor,” she says, laying back on the couch. Zayn grabs the bag of ice, gently setting it on her swollen joint. “Thank you.”

“Is that all you want?” I ask.

“Well, one more thing,” she says. “Can ya get me somethin’ ta drink?”

“What do you want?” I ask, walking over to the fridge.

“Green bottle, bottom left shelf.”

I grab the long-necked glass bottle, handing it to her before sitting down.

“Thanks,” she says, popping the cap off and taking a drink.


	23. Chapter 23

Zayn’s Point of View

When we come back from feeding the horses the next morning, I see another truck parked in the driveway, next to Laura’s. It’s slightly smaller, and black, a dark contrast to the bright red of Laura’s truck.

Laura’s seen it too, and is looking confusedly at the vehicle before her face lights up with a smile, and she runs up the stairs and into the bunkhouse.

“Nani!” I hear her shout, then laughter pours out the door.

The lads and I share a confused look before walking up the bunkhouse stairs, following Laura.

Following the happy sounds to the kitchen, we find Laura hugging an older woman with dark hair, tied back in a long braid similar to Laura’s. Crow’s feet extend off of the corners of her eyes as she smiles happily, her old, frail arms holding Laura close.

The shorter woman says something to Laura in another language, and Laura turns to look at us.

“Oh. Tsunalii,” Laura replies, nodding toward us. Huh?

The older woman nods, a smile on her face as she looks at us.

“ _Ulilohi_  Tsunalii,” she replies with a grin, nudging Laura with her elbow. What is she saying?

“Nani!” Laura scolds, an amused smile on her face. She looks over at us. “Don’t pay her no mind, she’s jus’ messin’ ‘round. This’s my grandma.” she tells us. Then she turns back to her grandmother, telling her our names. After she says Louis’ name, she mumbles something else that I can’t make out, and the older woman’s eyes get wide.

“Gvsgasdagi!” she says, her hand lightly hitting Laura in the back of the head.

Laura doesn’t seem at all fazed by the hit, grinning wickedly as if she’s just gotten away with something.

“Ya’ll can go do whatever, lunch’ll be ready soon,” she says.

Laura’s Point of View

As the guys walk away, Nani asks, “hiasgohidoganiwesgv nihi nasgiyai nasgiasgaya?” (Do you mean to say you like him?) I feel my eyes get wide, and I shake my head.

“Tla. Adahnalvsdodi.” (No. He’s irritating.)

She just shakes her head, a knowing smile on her face.

“Dohitsu?” (How are you?) she asks, changing the subject.

I nod. “Osdv.” (Good)

She sits down on one of the barstools at the counter while I start on lunch, kneading the dough I set out earlier so I can make tortillas.

We talk about how things have been going for each of us, what we’ve been doing lately. She tells me about her garden, and how many weeds are starting to grow in it, how Papi has been doing in his trapping business, and at the end she slides in the Uncle Jack is coming over later.

Uncle Jack is probably my favorite uncle. He’s one of Mama’s brothers, but he’s the most fun, often encouraging my shenanigans if not participating in them with me. He’s around the same age as Daddy, but he acts as if he’s my age, often joking around with me. But I can always count on him for honest advice and support.

After a while Liam comes down the stairs, asking if I want help with lunch. I tell him no, I’ve got it, so he sits down with Nani.

“Dohitsu?” (How are you?) she asks, starting up a conversation, but he has no clue what she’s saying.

“She asked how ya are,” I translate for him.

“Oh. I’m good. How are you?” I relay the question to Nani, and then they start talking, with me acting as the mediator. Once in awhile Nani will make a comment to me that makes me laugh while Liam sits there, confused, until I explain it.

“What is it that she keep calling you?” Liam asks.

“Lomasi?” I ask. He nods. “Means pretty flower.” He nods again.

Nani mutters something that I can barely hear, but I still turn around and raise an eyebrow at her grinning face.

“Nihi udlasidvhi gohiiga,” (you’re silly today) I tell her, shaking my head with a smile.

“What did she say?” Liam asks, tilting his head to one side.

“She jus’ said that she thinks yer handsome,” I say, turning back to the stove and stirring the peppers and onions in the skillet.

“Oh. Really?” I nod. “Well, thank you.”

“Wado,” I translate, making it so Nani can understand.

“Is that how you say it?” he asks. “Wado? That’s thank you?”

“Yeah, like that.”

“Waaa-do,” he says slowly, as if trying out the word. Nani laughs.

“Nihi ulihelisdi yancy,” she says with a smile.

“She says yer welcome, englishman.”

“Is  _that_  what he’s been calling me this whole time?” he says with a laugh.

I set the plate of food on the counter, then walk over to the sink, washing my hands.

“Food’s ready!” I call, and almost immediately there’s a thundering of feet running down the stairs and into the kitchen.

“Are you staying for lunch?” Harry asks Nani. I translate the sentence for her, and she nods.

“Does she speak English?” Harry asks, turning to me.

“A little, unaduti,” Nani speaks up with a smile, making me laugh.

“What? What’s so funny?” Harry asks.

“She jus’ -” I shake my head. “She jus’ called ya wooly head.”

“Oh. Well, thank you,” he says with a goofy smile.”

“Wado. That’s how you say it,” Liam says proudly. “I can speak Cherokee.”

“What? When did you learn that?” Niall asks.

“Just now.”

Louis’ Point of View

I could really care less about Liam learning how to say thank you, I want to know what Laura said about me earlier. I know it was enough to make her grandmother whack her upside the head, so there must have been some significance to it. But I know she won’t tell me. She hasn’t spoken to me since that night when she hit me with a knife. That’s five days, not that I’m counting.

I also haven’t gotten any more notes on my napkins. I didn’t realize it at first, but I guess I kind of got used to them, and now that they aren’t appearing anymore, I… miss them? That’s silly. Missing notes on my napkins. I think I might be going insane. Maybe that’s the bad dreams I’ve been having. The first couple days I was fine, thinking that maybe she just forgot or didn’t know what to write. But now I’m seeing that’s she’s making a point to ignore me, like she did in the truck yesterday when we were coming back from the Dillon’s. That was irritating.

As I sit across from her at the table, she’s looking at everyone except me, talking with her grandmother in a language I can’t understand. I want to know what she’s saying, it’s driving me crazy.

The door opens, and Laura smiles brightly, standing from her seat and walking over to the old man who walks in.

“Papi!” she greets, giving him a hug. “How are you?”

“I’m alright, Lomasi. How are you?” he asks. Yes! He speaks English! I can tell what he’s saying! Not any disrespect to her grandmother though. I just want to know what they’re talking about.

“ ‘M a’right. Where’s Jack?”

Jack? Wait, who’s Jack? Is this the same Jack that she dated?

“He’s outside. Got something for you.”

“Really?” She looks like a little kid on Christmas. If I weren’t so frustrated with her right now, I’d probably think she looks cute. The old man nods, then Laura walks out the door, leaving her food on the table.

I can hear shouting outside, and then the sound of a loud engine starting up and driving away.

The old man shakes his head with a smile, then walks over to Laura’s grandmother, saying something to her before sitting down in Laura’s chair.

“Are you Laura’s grandfather?” Liam asks, politely making conversation.

The old man nods, and he and Liam start talking, Harry and Niall adding their two cents in every once in a while.

Before long, I hear the loud sound of the engine again, and Laura’s loud laugh. I turn to look at the door when she walks in, dirt streaked all over her face and her hair a complete mess. Behind her is a tall man, with long - and I mean long - dark hair and tanned skin who looks like he’s in his thirties, wearing a plaid button up shirt, dark jeans, and a pair of boots.

“Thanks,” she tells him.

“No problem. Anythin’ fer my favorite niece,” he says, pinching her cheek. I know he’s just doing it to annoy her, I can tell by the look on her face.  

“That’s why yer my favorite uncle,” Laura grins. Oh, so he’s her uncle. Okay.

Laura heads up the stairs, I'm assuming to clean up her face, and Jack walks over, talking to her grandparents.

The other lads have finished their lunch, but I’ve been so busy thinking that I’ve only eaten half of what I put on my plate. I’m left alone with Laura’s family as the other lads put their plates in the sink and walk upstairs to their rooms.

A couple minutes later, Laura comes tiptoeing down the stairs, silently sneaking around until she’s behind Jack. How does she stay so quiet? She takes a deep breath, preparing to yell and scare him, and is about to let it out when...

“Lomasi, I know yer back there.”

Her shoulders slump a little. “Ah, shit.” She slumps into a chair next to him. “How’d ya know?”

He nods over at me, saying something in Cherokee. Goddammit, why can’t you just speak English so I can understand you?

I wake up early the next morning drenched in a cold sweat, out of breath.

“It’s not real, it’s not real,” I mutter to myself over and over again. I can’t get the image out of my head though, no matter how many times I try to think of something else.

It wasn’t me falling into a pit of eternal sadness this time, it was Laura. But she wasn’t yelling for help. She wasn’t saying anything. I was just stuck there, watching her fall, until she hit the bottom, and there was an explosion, and I don’t even know what else. But it was bad. I’ve been spending too much time around her.

“Go,” I hear Laura’s voice say from her room, then I hear the clicking sound of Yankee’s paws on the wooden floor. He walks out of Laura’s room, then I see his shadow move into my room, walking right up to my bed. I look over at him, and he pushes his nose against my hand, whining at me to pet him.

I sigh, then move my hand to scratch behind his ears, and he hops up onto my bed, laying across me and resting his furry head on my shoulder. Is this what he does when Laura has nightmares? Cause it’s already helping me calm down.


	24. Chapter 24

Niall's Point of View

We come into the main house for supper that evening, after a long day of moving cattle from one pen to the next. These ones that we moved today were feisty, always running the wrong way and not staying together. Needless to say, we're all a bit worn out, ready for a nice meal and then a shower, then bedtime.

But as soon as we walk through the door, I know it isn't going to happen soon enough.

"Lulu!"

Laura is tackled to the ground by Hanna and Johnny.

"Hey! Where'd you come from?" Laura asks, sitting on the floor with them as the lads and I walk over to the sink in the kitchen, washing our hands before we go to sit at the table in the dining room.

"Ma an' Daddy drove us! We're stayin' fer supper," the little boy says excitedly.

"Oh ya are?" Laura asks. "Who says?"

"I says," a deep voice says from the doorway. I look over and see a tall, barrel chested man with thin, graying hair and squinting, sunken eyes that seem to soften as he looks at Laura. He has a fond look on his face as he looks down at Laura and the two kids.

"Hey Jim," Laura says, gripping onto the counter to pull herself onto her feet, Hanna hanging off of her shoulder. "How've ya been?"

"Not too bad. How's the cattle business?"

Laura shrugs, making Hanna laugh as she swings back and forth. "It is what it is, can't do much 'bout it. Prices're gettin' lower, cost 's goin' up."

She reaches around behind herself, wrapping an arm around Hanna and pulling her around so that she's holding her upside down in front of her, the little girl's blonde hair falling out of it's ponytail to hang down, almost touching the floor.

"Still got 'nuff ta hire people though," she adds, nodding toward the lads and I.

"I was gonna ask," Jim says. "How've they been?"

"They're a'right, I s'pose," Laura says, and I can hear the smile in her voice. "They learn perdy fast."

"They ain't givin' ya no trouble, are they?" Jim asks with a grin.

"Ain't nothin' I can't handle," Laura replies with a grin of her own.

After supper is over, and the lads and I have stumbled back over to the bunkhouse, arguing over who gets the shower first, a loud roar of an engine cuts through the otherwise quiet atmosphere.

"Johnny! I told ya not ta push th' gas yet!" Laura laughs. I look out the window and see Johnny sitting on a four wheeler, Laura lying on the ground behind it, laughing.

"Sorry Lulu, I got excited," the little blonde boy replies as she picks herself up, dusting off her jeans before climbing back onto the vehicle.

"A'right, now go," she says, and they take off, riding down the driveway.

Harry's Point of View

"So what's with you two?" I ask Louis. We're both hanging out in his room, trying to stay cool in the lingering heat of the evening. There's apparently no air conditioning in the bunkhouse, so it stays pretty warm all the time.

He's just told me about Laura sending Yankee over after he'd had a bad dream last night, and we're trying to figure out why.

He shrugs. "I don't know. Nothing, I guess. She just won't talk to me," he says, his thumb rubbing over the thin red line on his wrist from where he got cut with the knife Laura threw. "But I've been having weird dreams."

"What kind of dreams?"

"Well, usually it's me falling into a pit of eternal sadness or something scary like that. But last night it was different. Laura was the one falling, not me. And she wasn't saying anything. I don't get it," he says, tugging at his hair. "This is messing with my head," he groans, frustrated.

"Maybe it's just because you're seeing her every day. That could make you dream about her," I suggest. Then a random idea pops into my head. "Maybe you like her?" I question.

"What?" he asks, turning to look at me as if I'm crazy. "No."

"Are you sure?" He nods.

"I'm sure. I mean, she's hot, obviously, but no, I don't... I don't like her like that."

"You hesitated," I point out.

"I did not. I don't like her."

I nod, trying to come up with a response.

"I don't know," I say after a while, "maybe it's because you're thinking about her too much or something."

"I have been doing that. But it's been, like, thinking about what she said to her grandmother about me. I wanna know what it was."

"Well, we can try to look it up, do you remember what it sounded like?"

"No. I tried, but I can't find anything that sounds even remotely like what she said. I didn't even hear the last part of it," he groans, rolling over so he's lying face down on top of his pillow.

"Well, that sucks," I say with a sympathetic smile.

"Tell me about it."

Laura's Point of View

"So are ya'll comin' to th' barbecue on th' fourth?" Sheila asks as we watch Johnny ride around on the four wheeler.

"Yeah. What d'ya want me ta bring?" I ask.

The fourth of July barbecue is a huge tradition for pretty much everyone who can make it to the football field behind the high school. The entire county is invited, and we have a sort of potluck lunch after the parade in town, and everyone sits on picnic blankets and lawn chairs until it's dark enough to watch the fireworks. Sheila's been in charge of it ever since I can remember, asking people to bring dishes or supplies.

"Whatever ya want," she replies. "You bringin' them?" she asks, nodding toward the bunkhouse. I shrug.

"I guess, iff'n they wanna go."

"Ya gettin' along with 'em?" All but one.

I nod. "Yeah, fer th' most part."

After a while, Johnny gets tired of the four wheeler, and goes inside to hang out with the guys. Jeremy and Kyle wander outside, taking turns jumping the four wheeler over the big dirt pile we've got in the horse pasture.

"So, ya'll comin' ta th' party?" Jeremy asks quietly, not wanting his mother to hear. It's probably the best kept secret, the after party on the fourth. Drinking, gambling, dancing, and at least one huge bonfire, all in the middle of the woods. I found out about it through Jeremy, who was told about it by a few friends. It's all pretty hush hush, but somehow every eighteen year old in the county knows about it the second they become an adult.

I nod. I wouldn't miss it for the world. "Course 'm goin'."

"You bringin' them new guys?"

"I guess. They can come iff'n they want. Might 's well give 'em th' full American experience while they're here."

"Uh huh."

He's quiet for a moment, watching as Kyle spins the tires of the four wheeler, sending clouds of dust into the air.

"Ya like any of 'em?" he asks with a grin.

"Please don't start with that agin," I groan. "No, I don't."

"Come on, you musta gotten ta know 'em better by now," he says, nudging me with his elbow. "There must be somethin' ya like 'bout 'em."

I sigh. "They're polite. They got that goin' fer 'em. Most of 'em."

"Most of 'em?" he inquires.

"Louis makes me mad," I clarify. "Asks too many questions."

" 'Bout what?" I put my hand over my stomach, and he already knows what I mean. "Oh."

Jeremy's one of two people that know, the other being me. I couldn't tell Daddy, or even Wyatt for that matter. It would've been a bad idea. So I confided in my best friend, because that's what best friends do. He had my back then, and he still does now.

"Yeah."

"You gonna tell 'im?"

"What are ya, crazy? Hell no."

"A'right," he says, putting his hands up. "I 'as jus' askin'," he assures me. "So which'ns yer favorite so far?"

"I don't do favorites. But iff'n I had ta pick, it'd probably be Zayn. 'E's th' quiet one. Don't ask a whole lot."

"Really? Thought ya liked th' loud 'n obnoxious ones."

"That was one time!"

Paul was probably the most... how do I put it... vocal of my boyfriends, often yelling instead of talking normally. But he was also really funny. Sadly, it didn't last, and we went our separate ways. He went to school to become a cop, and I'm glad I haven't gotten pulled over by him yet. That would be awkward.

"Sure. One time," Jeremy laughs. We both thought Paul would be the one. But he wasn't, obviously. It didn't work out too well, to put it lightly. But that's another story for another day.

" 'Sides, they're too skinny fer me," I say.

"Kyle! Jeremy!" Jim calls from the porch, "we're leavin'!"

"Bye Lulu," Jeremy says. "See ya Thursday."

"See ya."

Louis' Point of View

The next day I'm back in the saddle, and we're moving cattle around in the blazing heat again. These ones are really jumpy, getting scared at pretty much everything they see. I'm in the front, riding point, leading them toward the gate that they're supposed to go through. However, I can't seem to stay focused. I'm not sure if this will be a problem.

I ride up to the edge of the creek between me and the gate I'm riding toward. It looks pretty shallow, it should be easy to cross. I walk my horse, Frodo, up to the edge, then kind of let him step where he wants to, picking his own way through the water that comes up to his knees. I look back, and see the huge herd following me, the lads and Laura waiting on the bank.

Laura whistles sharply, and Yankee comes running from out of nowhere, then jumps up onto Rebel's back, laying behind Laura as the big horse starts walking through the water until they reach the middle, then she stops, turning Rebel so she can watch the cattle go by, making sure they're all getting across safely.

Yankee sits up, slinging his front legs over Laura's shoulders and putting his furry head on top of hers. She smiles, reaching a hand up to grab one of his paws.

She looks so content, so at home out here. Like she was born to do this kind of stuff.

Frodo stumbles, catching my attention, and I shake my head, looking ahead again. Harry's right, I am thinking about her too much. I need something else to think about.

It's really nice out today, if you don't count the heat. The birds are singing, the big, open sky is a bright blue, almost completely cloudless. It seems as if it goes on forever. The green grass looks soft and warm, covering the small rolling hills that stretch as far as I can see.

It truly is beautiful out here, where there's not hundreds of houses blocking the amazing view or smoke clogging up the clear air. It's so big that it makes a person feel small, only a tiny part of the huge world.

I like it. It's not quite home, but it'll do for now, I guess.

After we close the gate, Laura says there's one more thing we have to do before we're done for the day. I'm glad, because I can only take so much of this heat before it gets to be too much. We put the horses (all but Rebel) in their stalls and give them plenty of water to drink. Laura ties Rebel by the side of the barn, pulling off the saddle and blanket before giving him a drink.

"So, we gotta wash th' trailer out, gonna use it tammara fer th' parade," she says. "An' Rebel needs a bath."

Yes! Something that involves water! This won't be too bad.

"Jus' spray th' hose 'round till th' inside's clean, it ain't too hard," Laura says, handing Harry the end of the hose. He and Zayn step into the trailer, starting to wash out the inside. Then Laura walks into the barn, coming out with a bucket full of soapy water and a few brushes. I take a seat next to Liam and Niall under the tree, watching Laura while trying not to be obvious about it.

She walks over to Rebel, saying something to him before turning the hose on, pointing it at him and spraying him with water. Instead of standing still like she probably wanted him to, the big horse jumps, pinning his ears back and sidestepping away from the water.

"C'mon ya big sissy, it ain't that cold," she laughs, following him with the hose.

After she's sufficiently soaked his body, she reaches into the bucket, grabbing a sponge and scrubbing over his back.

She rinses the soap off, then wets his mane. Grabbing a blue bottle, she squeezes some out onto her hand, then starts running her fingers through Rebel's mane.

"You need a haircut mister," she says as she rinses the soap out, careful not to get any in his eyes. "It'll haveta wait though, gotta make ya perdy first." She walks around to his tail, wetting the long hair before lathering soap into it, working it into the dark fibers with her fingers.

She works meticulously, washing out all the dirt before rinsing it all out of Rebel's tail.

"There ya go," she says, stepping back to admire her work. She pulls out a huge towel, then rubs it all over him, drying the big horse off.

She then grabs a pair of shiny silver scissors, trimming Rebel's tail until the bottom is even.

"Hey somebody who ain't doin' nothin'," she calls, "can ya go get Penny an' bring 'er out here please?"

Liam, Niall, and I look at each other, trying to figure out who's going to get up and leave the shade.

"I'll go," Liam says, standing and walking into the stables. He comes back out a few minutes later with the small pony trotting along beside him, happy to be out of her stall.

"Thank ya," Laura says as she's handed the rope attached to Penny's halter. She ties the pony next to Rebel along the wall of the barn, and then turns back to her horse, pulling out what looks like hair clippers. She plugs it in, then turns it on, and Rebel jumps at the sound.

"Shh... yer a'right," she says quietly, moving closer until her forehead is pressed against his. "Shh..."

The big horse calms down a little, and she pulls his head down so that his nose is at her stomach, and then starts trimming the hair around his ears. As she works, she hums a tune that I can't quite place, but it sounds familiar. Rebel seems to like it, standing perfectly still.

After she finishes, Laura steps back, grabbing both sides of Rebel's halter and holding his face so she can look at him.

"Good boy, all done," she praises, scratching behind one of his ears. "Back ta yer stall you go." She walks him inside.

I feel someone nudge my arm.

"What?"

Liam raises an eyebrow. "What are you staring at?"

"Nothing," I reply with a shrug.

"Sure..." He props his chin on his hand, staring off into space as if he's in a trance, sticking his tongue out as he imitates me.

"Shut up," I say, shoving him, "I don't look like that."

Laura walks back out, the starts washing Penny, spraying the pony with the hose. Unlike Rebel, Penny stands stock still, calmly letting the water wash over her. Laura scrubs the soap into her blonde mane and tail, washing out all the dirt before rinsing the pony off.

I see Laura glance over to where Liam, Niall, and I are sitting, and I quickly look away, not wanting her to think I was staring at her - because I wasn't. The next thing I know, freezing cold water is falling on my head.

"Hey!" I shout, standing and glaring at Laura while trying to move away from the water. But it isn't Laura who's aiming the hose at me. "Harry! Stop it!"


	25. Chapter 25

Laura’s Point of View

I wake up the next morning extra early, to get ready. I’ve got a long list of things that have to get done, and a long day ahead of me. I pack my shirt and chaps for the parade in a bag, along with my brush and some extra hair ties. I can never be sure that these girls will always have everything they need, so I have to be twice as prepared as I normally am.

I’m the leader of my 4H club, one of the youngest leaders in the county as a matter of fact, and the group of kids that I lead are the best I’ve ever seen. They’re always ready to work, and usually come prepared for anything. Hanna, Kyle, and Johnny are part of the club, and Erica and her sister. There’s a couple other families, both of which have sisters who are on the volleyball team with me, coincidentally. 

We always ride in the parade, those of us who have horses, which are Erica, her sister Megan, Hanna and I. Since I have the tallest horse, I carry the flag, and we all paint our horses for the occasion. Which reminds me, I need to pack the paint. 

I jog down the stairs, into the laundry room, and open the cabinet above the dryer, pulling out a few cans of paint and the star shaped stencils, taking them back upstairs and putting them in my bag, zipping it closed and carrying it with me when I go back downstairs. I find my red boots in the pile of footwear on the rug by the screen door, and sit down at the table with the jar of leather conditioner, polishing them with a rag until they shine. After the boots are set by the door, away from the guys’, I put on my muck boots and head out to the stables to get Rebel and Penny ready for the ride in the trailer. 

Zayn’s Point of View

I didn’t think that a parade would be this… crowded. The streets of this small town are absolutely packed, leaving barely enough room for the lads and I to stand and watch for Laura, Hanna, and Erica as they ride down the pavement in the long line of floats and groups of people. It seems as if they’ve brought people in from other towns, there can’t be  _this_  many people living in the small village. I only saw about ten houses on our way in, and there’s hundreds of people lining the roadway. 

Laura’s put so much work into this, she was up before the sun was even out, packing things up and getting everything ready. And she still made breakfast for us. 

Then, when we arrived at the parking lot where people were lining up in the order they would follow for the parade, she had to fix a broken stirrup, and braid three horses’ manes and tails, then paint them with red and white stripes and blue stars. I didn’t know someone’s fingers could move so fast.

First comes the fire trucks. Not sure why they’d be first, but they come rolling down the street anyway, lights and sirens on, getting everyone excited for the start of the parade. 

After that comes a group of girls with batons, marching in place on top of a big hay wagon, twirling their batons in unison, bows in their hair that’s done up in pigtails. Then there’s a whole line of about thirty or so tractors, mostly driven by older people, with a few of their grandchildren sitting up in the seats with them, smiling and waving at everyone. 

“There they are!” Harry says, shouting in order to be heard over the cheer of the people around us. Apparently we aren’t the only ones here for Laura. 

She sits tall atop Rebel, smiling brightly as she holds the tall red, white, and blue flag with one hand, steering her horse the right way with the other. The white fringe that hangs off the shoulders and sleeves of her red shirt flutters in the slight breeze, the shining silver of her belt buckle glinting in the bright sunshine. 

Rebel walks with his head held high, and if a horse could look proud, I think that’s how it would look. Each step is solid, his shiny hooves keeping in time with the marching band that follows the four girls on horseback. 

Hanna is right behind Laura, grinning happily as she nudges Penny’s sides with her little legs, trying to get the pony to go faster. She has a little bag hanging off of the front of her saddle, and keeps throwing candy out of it, grabbing a piece out for herself every once in a while. 

Erica and another girl who looks almost exactly like her - a sister maybe? - are behind Hanna, tossing candy out of the bags on their saddles, smiling and waving at people as they pass by. When Erica sees us, she waves excitedly, shouting a ‘hey!’ 

Then they’re gone, and there’s a huge marching band stepping in time to a single drum making their way past us, playing some sort of patriotic song. I had no clue Americans were this… American. Everyone is wearing some combination of red, white, and blue, and holding small American flags in their hands. They all seem so happy. 

After the band, there’s more horses, these ones all moving in unison, the same foot stepping out at the same time, three completely straight lines of horses and their riders.

There’s tons of people, floats, and horses before the fire trucks go by again, and everyone starts to follow them, walking down the street behind the end of the procession. The lads and I follow, our pockets stuffed full of candy to eat later. 

“Hey, there ya are!” I hear a familiar voice say, and turn to see Jeremy walking over to us, a wide smile on his face. “Lori, these’re the’ guys I was talkin’ ‘bout,” he says to the girl beside him. My goodness, she looks so much tinier when she’s right in front of you. Like, she could pass for someone in middle school compared to Jeremy. This must be the girlfriend that Laura doesn’t like. 

“This’s Lori, my girlfriend,” he says, introducing her. Yep. It is. She looks nice enough though. We politely say hello, still walking among the crowd toward wherever they’re going. 

“So where are all the people going?” Liam asks. 

“Cemetery. There’s a service there after th’ parade, makes Laura cry every time,” he says with a fond smile. 

Then Laura herself come riding over, this time without a flag, followed by Erica, leading the other two horses behind them. 

“Hey,” she greets when she sees Jeremy. “You,” she says, pointing at the lads and I. “Hop on, we ain’t walkin’.” 

We make our way over to the horses, and Laura offers her arm out to me. I grab ahold of her hand, and she pulls me up so I’m sitting behind her. Liam climbs on behind Erica, Louis and Harry hop onto the other horse, and Niall climbs onto Penny. 

“Ya might wanna hang on,” Laura says, looking back for just a second before nudging Rebel with her legs, and we take off at a gallop. I nearly fall off, clinging to her as she laughs, looking to the side as Erica rides up alongside us, a laughing Liam behind her. I look back to see if the other lads are keeping up, and see them not too far behind us. 

Before too long, we reach the iron fencing that surround the hundreds of stone markers, and the laughing and joking ceases, the atmosphere suddenly somber.

We slide off of the horses, the girls pulling the saddles off and tying the reins to the fence along with the several other horses that are standing there. Laura fills a bucket and lets the horses drink a little, then we walk silently into the cemetery, following the trail of people through the maze of pathways until we reach the middle, where there’s a circle of white picket fencing, and a line of men in uniforms, guns leaning on their shoulders, standing across the small dirt pathway from the flag, which is only halfway up the flagpole. 

We fall into the crowd, following Laura as she makes her way over to a spot that I assume holds some sort of significance to her. 

She stops, and in front of her I see a tall, gray stone with a symbol of one of the branches of the American military - I don’t know which one - and the name William Johnson, a small American flag stuck into the ground next to it. She just stands there for a moment, muttering something so quietly I can’t hear it, I can only see her mouth moving. 

Then she suddenly turns around, taking a deep breath as she walks back over to our small group. 

“Are you alright?” I ask when she stops beside me. She nods, the corners of her mouth turned down. Her eyes shine, and I know she’s holding back tears. “Who is that?” I ask quietly.

She looks up at me, a hint of a sad half smile on her face. “Great grandpa. Died in Vietnam.”

I nod, not wanting to push her too far. I’m not big on making girls cry. 

A man steps forward, a paper in his hands, and says, 

“good afternoon, fellow Americans.”

He takes a deep breath, then continues. 

“Freedom is defined as the state of being free, having the power to determine action without restraint from outside forces. Our freedom was first won through the American Revolution. On July fourth, seventeen seventy six, the first Continental Congress declared our independence from Great Britain. This is now known as our national holiday, Independence Day. 

We live in a free country, with no limits to our choices, no outside forces controlling our actions. But we have to remember, every day, not just today, that our freedom is not free. Everything comes at a price, and freedom is no exception. 

Those members of the armed forces who are with us today, and those who aren’t, whether  they are no longer in this country or no longer on this earth, have made sacrifices to keep those of us here at home safe and free. Thank you to every veteran and those who are serving now, for giving us the freedom that not everyone has.”

With that, he steps back, and another man steps forward, wearing a uniform of a pressed white shirt and blue pants, a hat on his head. 

“Honor guard, attention!” he barks. The men with the rifles straighten their stance, moving to stand at attention. 

“Chaplain will offer a prayer.”

Yet another man walks forward, and everyone takes their hats off, bowing their heads. 

"Dear Heavenly Father, thank you for giving us the opportunity to be here today, to be free today. Thank you for all those who keep us out of harms way, and please keep them safe as they do so. Amen.”

He steps back, disappearing into the crowd. 

“Color guard, salute the dead!” 

Laura stiffens, knowing what’s coming as the men shoulder their rifles.

“Ready!” 

“Aim!”

They point their guns toward the sky.

“Fire!” 

Deafening gunshots ring out, making Laura jump.

“Fire!”

They shoot again, the shells falling from the guns and landing on the stones in the pathway with a clink. 

“Fire!” 

The last shots ring out in the sudden silence, and then there’s another sound. A trumpet, playing a slow, solemn melody that lasts for a few minutes before fading out.

“And now we have Luke Schultz, with a song by Trace Adkins.”

The tall boy steps up with his guitar, and begins to play. 

**I was there in the winter of '64, when we camped in the ice at Nashville's doors.**

**Three hundred miles our trail had lead, we barely had time to bury our dead.**

**When the Yankees charged and the colors fell, Overton hill was a living hell.**

**When we called retreat it was almost dark. I died with a grapeshot in my heart.**

**Say a prayer for peace, for every fallen son.** **Set my spirit free, let me lay down my gun.**

**Sweet mother Mary, I'm so tired.** **But I can't come home 'til the last shot's fired.**

**In June of 1944 I waited in the blood of Omaha's shores.**

**Twenty-one and scared to death, my heart poundin' in my chest.**

**I almost made the first seawall, when my friends turned and saw me fall.**

**I still smell the smoke, I can taste the mud, as I lay there dying from a loss of blood.**

**Say a prayer for peace, for every fallen son.** **Set my spirit free, let me lay down my gun.**

**Sweet mother Mary, I'm so tired.** **But I can't come home 'til the last shot's fired.**

**I'm in the fields of Vietnam, the mountains of Afghanistan.**

**And I'm still hopin', waitin' prayin' I did not die in vain.**

**Say a prayer for peace, for every fallen son.** **Set our spirits free, let us lay down our guns.**

**Sweet mother Mary, we're so tired.** **But we can't come home 'til the last shot's fired.**

**'Til the last shot's fired.**

Several voices, from all over the cemetery, start to sing, sounding almost ghostly as they pick up the verse.

**Say a prayer for peace (for peace), for our daughters and our sons.**

**Set our spirits free (set us free), let us lay down our guns.**

**Sweet mother Mary, we're so tired.**

**But we can't come home (No we can't come home)**

**'Til the last shot's fired.**

I shake the chills off, hearing Laura quietly curse. 

“Dammit, I said I wasn’t gonna cry.”

“Are you alright?” I ask her again. She nods, wiping under her eye. 

“I will be, jus’ gimme a minute.”

I step closer, debating on whether or not to give her a hug, but she puts a hand out. 

“ ‘M fine, don’t worry ‘bout me.”

“You a’right Lulu?” a teasing voice calls in a whisper. 

“Shut up!” she says with a laugh, “I jus’ got somethin’ in my eye.”

We start to follow the rest of the people out of the silent cemetery, and back to the horses. Laura climbs back onto Rebel once she’s put his saddle on, offering me her arm and pulling me up behind her again. All of us ride off toward where everyone seems to be gathering, a large field with picnic blankets under the trees around the edges and a long table of food in the middle.  Laura stops next to the familiar horse trailer, tying Rebel on the shady side, letting him eat some grass. 

“So, th’ food’s over there, I’ll put th’ blanket over by th’ Dillon’s. Ya’ll can go get somethin’ ta eat iff’n ya want,” she says as she takes Rebel’s saddle off, carrying it into the trailer to hang it on it’s rack. Niall and Louis take off almost immediately, Liam following after them. Harry and I stay behind, waiting for Laura. Once she steps out of the trailer, having washed the paint off of both Rebel and Penny and put everything away, she seems surprised to see us still there.

“Ya’ll don’t haveta wait fer me. Go eat.”

“No, it’s alright, we can wait,” Harry says, taking the words from my mouth. Laura shrugs, then walks back into the trailer, pulling the door closed behind herself, not catching my subtle half-glare at Harry. He just shrugs it off, smirking at me. 

I hear shuffling from inside the trailer, and soon a shirt is hung over the edge of the window. 

“Laura? What are you doing?” I ask. 

“Changing my clothes. What’ya think ‘m doin’?” 

“In a horse trailer?” Harry asks. 

“Yeah. Why, ya want me ta take my clothes off out there where ya can see me?” she sasses. 

“Well, if you’re offering…” he trails off in a joking tone. Through the slats at the top of the wall of the trailer I can see her give him a look that says ‘are-you-serious?’ Then she pulls something over her head, and then she’s swinging the door open, stepping out into the open. 

She’s changed from her fringy shirt into a tight red tank top, tucked into her equally tight jeans. Her dark hair is still up, in a braid that falls over her shoulder. She tosses her bag into the cab of the pickup truck hooked to the front of the trailer, then walks back to us. 

“Let’s go eat.”

Liam’s Point of View

I sit by Erica on the blanket that’s spread out under the big oak tree, Louis and Niall sitting across from us. Laura’s on the other side of Erica from me, sitting with her back against Zayn’s, both of them leaning on each other. 

We’ve long finished our food, except for Laura, who’s still splitting Oreos in half and combining them to make super stuffed Oreos with twice the cream in them, and Zayn’s eating the leftover cookies as she hands them to him. 

“So where’s What’s-‘is-Face?” Laura asks, popping another Oreo into her mouth. 

“Evan?” Erica asks, irritated. 

“Yeah, ‘im. Where is ‘e?” 

“He’s at 'is grandparent’s fer th’ week. said ‘e couldn’t come,” the shorter girl says, disappointed.

“Who’s Evan?” I ask, a bit confused.

“My boyfriend.”

What? She’s got a boyfriend? I had no clue, I thought… dang.

“Hey look! They got a football!” Laura shouts, scrambling to her feet and running over to the group of guys standing in a circle, talking to them. A few seconds later, she runs back over to us. “They say they need ‘bout seven more people ta make a full game. Ya’ll wanna play?”

“Is it football or  _American_  football?” Harry asks. 

“ ‘Merican football, obviously. They’re playing tackle, so iff’n ya don’t wanna get injured, I understand.”

“I’ll play,” Erica says, standing. “C'mon, it’s fun,” she tells me, tugging at my arm. 

“I guess I’ll try it,” I concede, smiling as the small girl tries to pull me up.

“Then I suppose we’ll play too,” Niall agrees, “better than sitting here doing nothing.” 

We walk over, and are split up into teams. Laura, Erica, Niall, me, and a few other guys against Harry, Louis, Zayn, and some more people. 

“A’right, they got first ball, so jus’ pick someone and cover ‘em. Try not ta kill people, but plow ‘em over iff’n ya gotta,” one of the Schmidts says. “Erica, jus’ be careful.”

“I’ll be fine, don’t baby me,” she sasses. 

“Right then. Let’s go.”

We line up across from the other team, and I have absolutely no real clue of what I’m doing. 

“Jus’ keep th’ guy ‘cross from ya from gettin’ close ta th’ ball,” Laura mutters to me, lining herself up across from Harry. 

Two hours later, Laura makes the final touchdown, throwing the ball down and doing a little victory dance. 

“Told ya we’d win, you owe me,” she tells one of the guys on the other team. He rolls his eyes before pulling a twenty out of his pocket and handing it to her. She smiles brightly before walking over to where Jeremy’s sitting with his guitar, surrounded by a huge group of kids. 

“Lulu!” I hear some of them shout.

“Finally! Now we can do some songs,” Jeremy says. “They wanted you ta sing, not me. Apparently yer prettier’n me.”

“Obviously yer th’ prettier one outta th’ two of us,” Laura says, poking his cheek when he smiles. Then she turns to the kids. “So whaddya wanna hear?”

They all start shouting things, and the two friends laugh. 

“I think I heard Patch o’ Heaven in there somewhere,” Laura says. “Need a fiddle fer that though…” she looks around, then spots Ann. “Hey Annie!” 

The brunette walks over, a small violin in her hands. 

“You know Patch o’ Heaven?” Laura asks. Ann nods, and the children cheer. “Will ya play?”

“Sure,” Ann says with a smile. 

They count off, then Ann and Jeremy start playing a happy melody while Laura taps her foot, waiting until it’s time for her to sing. When she does add her voice, it’s smooth and sweet, a smile on her face. 

_I know a place, pretty as pie. Out where the river bend hits up with the end of the sky._

_It's left of Nebraska, and over a crest, on a little patch of heaven way out west._

  _Ev'rything's green- know what I mean?_ _Darlin' it's quite the sweetest sight thatcha ever done seen._

_Ain't nothin' much out there- just life at its best, o_ _n that little patch of heaven way out west._

_Bees by the dozen are buzzin' real peaceful._ _Ev'ry bluebonnet, doggone it, smells nice._

_Even the tumblin' tumbleweed s_ _lows down to match your speed o_ _n that tiny half-an-acre of paradise!_

_Ev'ry which way, buttercups sway._ _Out on the hill, the daffodils are enjoyin' the day._

_What could be better than settin' to rest, o_ _n a little patch of heaven way out west?_

  _Hummin' birds flutter in utter contentment. E_ _v'ry dark daisy feels lazy, you bet._

_Even the skeeters an' the fleas s_ _ay "May,I," "Thanks" and "Please"- w_ _hy, it's just as close to perfect as you can get!_

_Darlin', I swear- once you been there, t_ _here ain’t a view beneath the blue t_ _hat could ever compare!_

_The only thing missin' is you as my guest_

Laura leans forward, poking Hanna on the nose _._

_On that little patch of heaven way out west..._

  _Why don'tcha come visit? There's room in the nest-_ _On that little patch of heaven way out west!_

The kids cheer, then they start asking for another song. 

“Easy, one at a time,” Laura laughs. It’s funny how she can go from tackling people to the ground to being so sweet and happy around all these kids. “What was that last one?”

“The beautiful one!” a small voice requests. 

“Which one is that?”

“The one where she doesn’t know she’s beautiful,” the little red haired girl elaborates. 

“There’s a lot of ‘em like that,” Laura says with a smile. “Who sings it?”

“A guy…”

“No, there’s more than one guy!” another small voice pipes up. 

“I thought it was jus’ one… they all sound the same.”

“ ‘S it th’ one with th' clappin’ ‘n th’ na na nanas, 'r somethin’ different?” Jeremy asks. 

“No, that one!” one little brown haired girl shouts excitedly. They know What Makes You Beautiful?

“No it wasn’t!” the first one says with a pout. 

“I don’t know that’n,” Laura says quietly, a confused look on her face.

“Well, it’s sorta new, this band from ‘cross th’ pond sings it,” Jeremy explains. “ ‘S that th’ one yer talkin’ ‘bout?” The small brunette nods. “I ain’t sure how it goes. Maybe they know it,” he says, nodding toward the lads and I. 

“Hey Liam, you know what song she’s talkin’ ‘bout?” Laura asks. I nod. “Can you sing it? Please?” 

“How about it lads?” I ask. They nod with knowing smiles. We move over to where the two friends are sitting, and Niall is handed Jeremy’s guitar. He starts strumming, plucking the strings to play the familiar rhythm. I wait until it’s time, then start to sing.

**You're insecure, don't know what for, y** **ou're turning heads when you walk through the door,**

**Don't need make-up, to cover up, being the way that you are is enough,**

Harry then comes in with his part.

**Everyone else in the room can see it, e** **veryone else but you,**

We all smile as we start to sing together. 

**Baby you light up my world like nobody else, the way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

**But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell, you don't know, oh, oh,**

**You don't know you're beautiful,**

**If only you saw what I can see, you'd understand why I want you so desperately,**

**Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe, you don't know, oh, oh,**

**You don't know you're beautiful, oh, oh, t** **hat's what makes you beautiful**

Niall keeps going with the guitar part, and then Zayn sings his solo.

**So c-come on. You got it wrong.** **To prove I'm right I put it in a song.**

**I don't know why you're being shy, a** **nd turn away when I look into your eye-eye-eyes,**

Harry sings alone again, his green eyes sparkling with excitement. 

**Everyone else in the room can see it, everyone else but you,**

Then the rest of us join in.

**Baby you light up my world like nobody else, t** **he way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

**But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,**

**You don't know, oh oh, y** **ou don't know you're beautiful,**

**If only you saw what I can see, y** **ou'll understand why I want you so desperately,**

**Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe, y** **ou don't know, oh oh, y** **ou don't know you're beautiful, oh oh,**

**That's what makes you beautiful**

We start clapping, smiling wider as a few of the kids join in.

**Na na na na na na na na na na**

**Na na na na na na**

**Na na na na na na na na na na**

**Na na na na na na**

Harry signs alone, his voice the only sound in the air around our small crowd. 

**Baby you light up my world like nobody else, t** **he way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed, b** **ut when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell,**

Niall begins to play again, and we all join our voices together for the last chorus. 

**You don't know, oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful,**

**Baby you light up my world like nobody else, t** **he way that you flip your hair gets me overwhelmed,**

**But when you smile at the ground it ain't hard to tell, y** **ou don't know, oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful,**

**If only you saw what I can see, you'll understand why I want you so desperately,**

**Right now I'm looking at you and I can't believe, you don't know, oh oh,**

**You don't know you're beautiful, oh oh, you don't know you're beautiful, oh oh** ,

And then Harry finishes it off with the last line.

**That's what makes you beautiful**

The kids start clapping, and one little girl runs right up to us, saying, “you sound just like them!” which makes the lads and I laugh. 

“A’right, that was perdy good,” Laura says. “Watcha want now?” 

They sing a few more songs, until Laura says that the next one is gonna be the last one, that there’s a band or something setting up for the square dancing. 

“Born to fly!” Hanna shouts. 

“You like that’n, don’tcha?” the tall girl asks with a smile. She nods at Jeremy, and he starts to play the happy sounding melody. 

_I've been tellin' my dreams to the scarecrow, ‘bout the places that I'd like to see_

_I said, friend do you think I'll ever get there? Ah, but he just stands there smilin' back at me._

_So I confessed my sins to the preacher, about the love I've been prayin' to find._

_Is there a blue eyed boy in my future, yeah? He says, girl you've got nothin' but time._

_But how do you wait for heaven? And who has that much time?_

_And how do you keep your feet on the ground when you know, that you were born, you were born to fly?_

_My daddy, he's grounded like the oak tree. My momma, she is steady as the sun._

_Oh you know I love my folks, but I keep starin' down the road, just lookin' for my one chance to run._

_Yeah, 'cause I will soar away like the blackbird, I will blow in the wind like a seed._

_I will plant my heart in the garden of my dreams, and I will grow up where I'll wander wild and free._

_Oh, how do you wait for heaven? And who has that much time?_

_And how do you keep your feet on the ground, when you know, that you were born, you were born yeah, you were born to fly?_

_So how do you wait for heaven? And who has that much time?_

_And how do you keep your feet on the ground, when you know that you were born, you were born to fly fly fly fly?_

_Hey..._ _Ooooh, ooooh_

The two friends stand from their spots, and the kids thank them for singing for them, then we all walk toward where there seems to be quite a few people gathering. 

“You changed it again,” Jeremy mutters to Laura.

“What’s it matter? ‘S jus’ a color,” she says. “You know ‘m a sucker fer blue eyes.” She shoves him a little, and he shoves her back. Then she tackles him, and they both fall to the ground, laughing. 

“Jeremy!” a high pitched voice calls. I see - well, barely - a blonde head of hair walk over to the two friends just as Laura rolls off of Jeremy, and the girl stands there with her hands on her hips. 

“Hey Lori,” he says with a smile as he sits up. She leans over, saying something in his ear that has Laura making a face and getting off the ground as fast as she can. 

“A’right, you two have fun with that,” she says as she walks toward us. “Let’s go, ‘fore it gets icky.” She pulls at mine and Zayn’s arms, tugging us away from the couple who are now sitting on the ground grinning at each other. 

“What did she say?” Niall asks curiously as we follow her. 

“Somethin’ even  _I_  didn’t wanna hear,” Laura says with a shudder. 

Niall’s Point of View

After a few hours of dancing and sneaking more dessert, it’s finally dark, and we’re all sitting on the blankets that are spread out across the open field, watching the fireworks. Laura’s left her spot by the lads and I to go sit by Rob, and Ann’s come over to take her place by me. She seems fascinated by the explosions of color in the sky, and I’m fascinated by her expressions.

Her dark eyes reflect the bright sparks as they explode, the flashes of light illuminating her face. She’s smiling brightly, soft gasps falling from her lips when an especially fancy pattern is made with the fireworks. 

“What?” she asks, turning to look at me.

“Nothing,” I say, looking up at the sky, trying to make it seem like I wasn’t just staring at her like a creep. 

I hear her laugh, then she grabs my face in her hands, turning my head to look at her. She smiles at me, making me grin like an idiot. I reach over and tuck a stray piece of hair behind her ear. She leans forward a little bit, and I find myself doing the same, closing the gap between us until her eyes flutter closed and our lips meet. 

Her lips are warm and soft as they move with mine, her hair soft as my fingers run through it. When we break apart, Ann has a soft smile on her face. She scoots closer, leaning her head on my shoulder as my arm wraps around her shoulders. 

Louis’ Point of View

The lads and I sit at the bottom of the stairs, the bunkhouse dark as we wait for Laura. She said there was some sort of after party thing and that we could go if we wanted, but we’d be gone most of the night. All night actually. We’re going to stay the night at the Dillon’s again. She’s currently getting changed, and she’s taking  _forever_. 

“So Niall, what were you doing earlier?” Harry asks. Niall keeps his head down, looking at his phone with a wide grin. Harry nudges him. “Niall.”

“What?” he asks, his head snapping up. “What did you say?” 

“Come on, you know what I said, what’s with you snogging Ann?” 

Niall’s face gets red, and I wrap an arm around his shoulder, ruffling his hair.

“Aw, little Nialler’s growing up!” 

“Get off!” he groans, laughing as he shoves me off of him. “So what? We kissed.” He shrugs. “You don’t have to make a big deal out of it.” His phone lights up again, and he’s quick to check and see who the message is from. The rest of the lads and I laugh, knowing he’s texting Ann by the way his face splits in half from his sudden grin. 

Soft padding of feet coming down the stairs, and suddenly Laura’s sitting with us.

“What’s funny?” she asks, leaning over Niall’s shoulder to try and read what he’s typing. 

“Niall and Ann,” Harry answers. 

“Oh,” she says, nodding her head, a small smile on her face. “So what’re we watin’ fer?”

“Well,  _we_  were waiting for you,” Niall answers. 

“Oh. Well, ‘m here, so let’s go.” 

We walk outside, to where Laura’s parked her truck. I walk at the back of the group, trying to figure out what Laura’s got on her head, because I know she won’t answer me if I ask. When she steps into the light above where her truck’s parked, I can see clearly. 

She’s let her hair down, and it’s falling in soft curls around her shoulders, almost all the way down to her hips. She’s got a white ACDC tank top on, tucked into her tight jeans. She looks… hot.  _Really_  hot. Wow. 

We all pile into the truck, and soon we’re rolling down the road. 

About halfway to the Dillon’s, Laura reaches over to the radio, turning it off. 

“Hey, I liked that song!” Niall protests from the backseat.

“I got somethin’ serious ta tell ya,” she says. “Jeremy says he’s only takin’ us back with ‘im ta ‘is house, so no unexpected guests. Got it?” 

We all nod, and she continues.

“Iff’n th’ cops show up, scatter. Meet back at th’ truck once shit calms down.”

“Cops?” Harry asks, sounding nervous. 

Laura nods. “Yessir. Shouldn’t be a problem though. Gig’s way back in th’ woods. Ain’t nobody gonna find us.” 

There’s a bit of a pause, then she speaks again. 

“There’s a good chance ’m gonna get wasted, so don’t lemme do nothin’ stupid, please.”

Zayn reaches up from his spot behind her and sets a hand on her shoulder. The simple gesture has become almost a form of silent communication between the two of them, and almost instantly Laura relaxes. 

“Don’t worry love, we’ll watch out for you,” he reassures her. She look in the rearview mirror, meeting his eyes. The look in her eyes is full of trust. She knows she can count on us to keep her safe. 

Her eyes return to the road, a small smile on her face, and Zayn removes his hand, sitting back in his seat. 

“An jus’ so ya’ll know, iff’n I act flirty ‘r whatever with ya, I ain’t sorry,” Laura says, and we all share a laugh. At least she’s honest about it. 

She turns the radio back on, and grins once she recognizes the song, beginning to sing along.

When Laura’s truck pulls into the Dillon’s dark driveway, the first thing we see is Jeremy’s truck, the engine running as he waits for us. Next to it is Jeremy himself, with Lori standing beside him. He looks dressed up, wearing a dark blue plaid shirt tucked into his jeans, and his favorite black leather belt.

As for Lori, she’s wearing a denim skirt that’s a bit shorter than it should have been, and a pink plaid shirt that’s tied just above her waist, exposing her almost orange fake tanned stomach and showing off her belly button ring. Her blonde hair is curled, making her appear more innocent. She looks cute, but at the same time she looks like a … not nice word that I’m not going to say.

We pile out of Laura’s truck, and climb into the bed of Jeremy’s truck, while Jeremy and Lori get into the cab. Soon we’re back on the dirt roads again, going farther and farther into the boondocks.

 "So, iff'n there's creepy people, cause there prolly will be, find me, I'll help ya," Laura says, leaning against the back of the cab. We nod, even though I'm silently hoping that I won't have to worry about anything like that. 

"What happens here?" Liam asks. I'm curious too. Everything is so much different out here than what I'm used to, so I'm still sort of getting used to everything. "Like, what do people do?"

"Drink a lil drink, smoke a lil smoke," Laura says, "some people get laid." Her face gets serious. "There's a whore with black hair that us'lly shows up. Don't go  _nowhere_  near 'er." 

As we get closer, I begin to see pickup trucks lining the sides of the road. Jeremy pulls to the side, parking in line with a dirty gray truck. 

Everyone climbs out, dust stirring under our feet as we begin walking farther down the road. 

“If nothin’ happens, we meet back at th’ truck at 3. Got it?” Jeremy asks. Laura nods, and Jeremy takes Lori’s hand and they walk off in a different direction, while the lads and I follow Laura, continuing down the road. 

I see a driveway of sorts, more of a footpath, and Laura turns off the road, walking on the thin trail. The farther away from the road we walk, the closer we get to the woods, and the more I can hear music and laughter coming from somewhere in the trees. 

When we reach the edge, Laura pulls back a branch, ducking under it, and we follow suit, careful not to get hit when the branch swings back. 

When I turn from looking behind me to make sure I wasn’t hitting anyone with the branch, my eyes go wide. 

There’s people everywhere, weaving in and out among the trees, which have lights strung on them, dimly illuminating the scene a red and orange glow. I catch a glimpse of what looks like a makeshift bar, a few guys standing behind wooden planks resting on top of stacked barrels, handing people cups and bottles of what has to be alcohol. A huge bonfire crackles in the center of it all, and several smaller fires can be seen, scattered all over. There’s a row of rusty pickup trucks lined up on one side of where we’re standing. They look as if they haven’t moved in ages, judging by the tall grass growing around them.

It's like a nightclub in the middle of the forest. 

Laura turns to us, a wide grin on her face.

“Alrighty boys, let’s go get drunk!” 


	26. Chapter 26

3rd Person Point of View

“Who’s that?” Laura asks Jeremy. 

They’ve been sitting - well, most of them are sitting. Laura hasn’t sat down yet, claiming to be too excited - on a few barstools by a shelf looking thing running between two trees for a while now. Jeremy came back around without his girlfriend, much to Laura’s delight. The two friends have been talking and drinking for a while. 

“One o th’ Potters,” Jeremy replies. 

“Thought they left th’ county after…” Laura says, trailing off at the end as she stares at the guy across the clearing. 

“So did I…” Jeremy looks at Laura, then at the guy, then back at Laura. “Bet ya five dollars ya can’t get ‘is keys.” 

It’s an annual game between the two of them. Laura sees how many sets of keys she can get from the guys that are there, and Jeremy sees how much he can keep in his wallet. Neither of them are sure when it started, but it’s become a tradition.

Laura looks over at him with a smirk. “Really?” She looks over at the guy. “A’right.” 

The two friends shake hands, then Laura downs the rest of her drink before walking over to where the guy is talking to some other people. 

“What’s she doing?” Louis asks, curious. 

“She’s tryin’ ta get ‘is keys,” Jeremy answers. “Gonna sweet talk ‘im inta thinkin’ she’s gonna go wait ‘n ‘is truck fer ‘im, then ‘e gives ‘er th’ keys,” he elaborates when he sees the confused look on Louis’ face. 

“Oh.” 

Laura lightly touches the guy’s arm, and he turns around, blinking when he sets his wide eyes on her. Louis can’t tell what they’re saying, but sure enough, after a few minutes, the guy reaches into his pocket and pulls out a lanyard, the silver metal of his truck key glinting in the low light, handing it to Laura with a smirk. 

She turns around, strutting back through the crowd of people to her friend, dropping the keys onto the plank that their drinks rest on. 

“ ’is name’s John,” she says with a smirk.

“A’right, that’n was jus’ luck,” Jeremy laughs. “How many you bettin’ yer gonna get this year?”

“ ‘M bettin’ ‘bout six,” Laura replies.

“Ya know, they don’t count,” Jeremy says, nodding toward the lads, minus Louis, who were talking to some girls nearby. 

“I know. They ain’t got keys.” For a fraction of a second, Laura’s eyes dart over to Louis, who’s been sticking around her and Jeremy all night. She doesn’t know why, but for some strange reason she doesn’t seem to mind as much as she thinks she should. 

“So you seen Rob?” she asks, scanning the crowd for him for about the twentieth time tonight. She’s been hoping to attempt to get his keys, only she’d actually go wait in the truck for him. 

“Nope. Heard Ashley was havin’ a bonfire at her house, ‘e might be there.” 

Laura glares at her best friend, knowing he’s saying that to mess with her. 

Half an hour and seven lanyards later, Laura returns with none other than Jake Schmidt’s keys, adding them to the pile. 

“ ‘E still ain’t learned,” she laughs. “So shitfaced ‘e didn’t even know it ‘as me.” 

“So are you gonna give them their keys back?” Louis asks, curious. Maybe now that Laura’s had a few drinks, she’ll talk to him. 

“Hang ‘em on th’ mirrors’ o’ th’ trucks 'fore we leave,” Jeremy says after looking to Laura to see if she’ll talk, which she doesn’t. “They’ll figure it out eventually.” He takes a sip of his drink. “You seen Lori? She walked off when we got here, an’ I ain’t seen ‘er since.”

Laura shrugs, silently cheering that she doesn’t have to deal with the short blonde. “I ain’t seen ‘er.” She hadn’t really been looking, but she didn’t need to say that. “ ‘M gonna go get ‘nother drink,” she says before she walk off toward the bar. 

About halfway there, she stumbles into a couple, a tall guy and a very short girl, their arms wrapped around each other. 

“Hey, go get a room!” she shouts after them, running a hand through her hair. 

She walks up to the bar, asking for a whiskey as she leans on the bartop. 

“Hey,” a deep voice says. Laura looks to her right as a tall guy slides in next to her. Dark hair, grey blue eyes, a chiseled jaw and cheekbones, the build of a farm boy. Laura likey.

He suddenly sneezes, and apologizes soon after. 

“I’d say God bless ya, but it looks like ‘e a’ready did,” Laura says smoothly. 

“That how you get all the guys?” he asks.  

“Jus’ th’ pretty ones,” Laura replies. 

“So, you alone?” he asks, looking around for any sign of a boyfriend.

“Depends on who’s askin’,” Laura replies noncomittally. She could say she’s with someone, because technically she did come with a truck full of guys, but she could also say she’s alone, because she doesn’t have an actual boyfriend at the moment. Her answer depends on his intentions with her.

“Someone who’s feeling a bit … lonely,” he replies, sliding an arm around her shoulders. “Maybe you could help with that.” Oh, so he wants someone to sleep with. Nope. Nevermind.

“How ‘bout no,” Laura replies, taking his arm off of her and setting it on the bar.

Then her drink is handed to her, and with a thank you, she turns to walk away. 

“Hey wait,” he calls, reaching out for her arm. Persistent little shit, isn’t he? 

Laura gently pulls her arm back, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. She doesn’t want him to just think he can grab her, she hates being manhandled by strangers who are too cocky for their own good. When he doesn’t let go, she gets a little snotty about it.

“What th’ hell you think yer doin’?” she asks, her voice still calm and quiet. 

“Takin’ you home,” he says, stepping closer to her. 

“Excuse you?” she sasses. “I ain’t goin’ nowhere with you.”

“Mmm, I like ‘em sassy,” he growls, backing her up into a tree, pinning her there with his body. 

Laura knows she’s on her own for this. Most people that are around will think they’re just making out or something, and Jeremy’s too far away to see what’s going on. So she does what she’s had to do several times before.

“Get off me!” she says, shoving at him. When he doesn’t move away at all, instead coming closer, she closes her hand into a fist and slugs him in the jaw. 

He stumbles backward, and she walks away, weaving through the crowd, not looking back. 

“What took so long?” Jeremy asks when she hops up onto the stool beside him. 

“Some cocky jackass,” she replies. “Wouldn’t leave me ‘lone.” 

Laura likes getting the attention, but when it gets to where she feels like he’s not going to stop, she blocks the advance the best she can. Call it learning from experience. 

She looks up, seeing an uncomfortable Niall sitting at a table with a girl that’s too close to him to be just ‘talking.’ His eyes flash over to her, silently pleading for help, and she nods, taking a swig of her drink before setting it down and disappearing into the crowd. 

Niall is less than happy when the black haired girl sits down with him to start with. 

“Hey handsome,” she purrs, sliding her chair over so she sits right next to him, almost touching.

“Hi,” he replies disinterestedly, looking around as if he’s waiting for someone to come back. Technically he is, but he doubts that the rest of the lads would be back anytime soon. 

He was hoping to not have to talk to anyone, wanting to text Ann some more. She’s over at the Wilder’s bonfire. They still haven’t defined what they are after their kiss earlier today, but Niall isn’t looking to go anywhere in the meantime until he knows for sure that what Ann wants and what he wants are the same. 

“What’s a nice lookin’ guy like you doin all alone?” the girl asks, leaning over. Niall keeps looking around, not wanting to fall prey to the vortex that is her cleavage. Once he looks, he knows he’ll be done. 

He catches Laura’s eye from across the clearing, and she nods, seeing his predicament. 

“I’m uh, I’m not alone,” he replies.

He sees Laura take a drink, then she disappears. What? Isn’t she supposed to be helping him?

“Really?” the girl next to him asks, unconvinced. She’s been eyeing the blonde for awhile, waiting until he was alone to make her move. She’s not about to give up now without a good reason. 

“Yeah.”

“Well, where is she?” 

Niall blanks, not knowing what to say. He’s starting to panic inside when he feels a hand slide onto his shoulder.

“She’s right here,” Laura’s voice says. She sets her chin on his shoulder, wrapping her arm around him. “Brought yer beer ya asked fer.” She sets the mug on the table in front of Niall.

”Thanks, babe,” he replies with a smile, relieved that she’s there. 

The stranger huffs, stomping her foot as she gets up and walks away. Niall goes to move,but Laura’s voice stops him.

“Wait’ll she’s gone,” she quietly mutters. 

Sure enough, the girl stops, turning to look back. 

“Look up like I jus’ asked iff’n ya wanna get outta here,” Laura says in his ear. Niall turn his head, looking at Laura with wide eyes. She nods her head toward where Jeremy’s sitting, and Niall nods, catching the hint. He grabs the beer, and the two walk off, leaving the black haired girl irritated, but convinced. 

“You owe me,” Laura mutters once they get over to where Jeremy and Louis sit. 

“Thanks,” Niall says as he sit next to Louis. “Thought she’d never leave.”

Then a familiar song comes on, making Laura turn toward the cleared spot where people are dancing. The low voice of Josh Turner reaches her ears, and she immediately walks away, off to dance. 

“So why aren’t Ann and them here?” Niall asks Jeremy. The other boy raises an eyebrow before answering. 

“Her folks’re pretty strict with ‘er. She ain’t ‘llowed ta drink ‘r othin’, so parties’re outta th’ question. So th’ Wilder’s, bein’ th’ nice little shits they is, have a bonire th’ same night as this. Don’t have more’n five ‘r six people show up though.”

Niall nods. 

“How strict are they?” he asks curiously. 

“Well, she brought a guy home once, an’ ‘er dad had th’ shotgun an’ all five of ‘er brothers there ta talk to ‘im ‘fore they could go anywhere.”

“Five brothers?” 

Jeremy nods. “Yessir, five brothers ‘n three sisters. Call ‘em th’ Kossey Posse. Ann’s th’ youngest.”

“She told me that, but she never said how  _many_  siblings she had,” Niall answers, trying to wrap his head around it. 

About an hour later, an obviously drunk Laura is laughing at whatever Niall and Harry are saying, which even they can’t understand, their words are so slurred. 

“So… so  _wait_. Wait,” she says, holding a hand out. “You don’t know Dixie?” she asks. The three Harrys in her vision shake their heads, and her mouth falls open. “Whaaaat?”

Then she bursts into a round of the classic song, her voice cracking unintentionally when she tries to hit the high notes. 

“I wish I ‘as in th’ land o’ cotton, old times there ‘re not fergotten! Look ‘way, look ‘way, look ‘way, - Duck!” Laura suddenly sits down on the ground, covering her head as if there’s something flying through the air. Harry and Niall are quick to copy her, landing in a pile on top of the now laughing girl. 

“What’re we hiding from?” Harry asks. 

“Th’ heffalumps,” Laura replies in a whisper. “Shh!” 

“Laura, where’d ya go?” Jeremy asks as he walks back, a half dozen mugs in his hands. 

“Shh! Get down!” Laura says, grabbing a mug for herself and taking a drink. “They’s gonna get ya!”

“Who is?” Jeremy asks, playing along. 

“Them!” Laura shouts pointing in a random direction before scrambling to her unsteady feet and attempting to run away. Before she can take two steps she tumbles over the two boys who are still lying on the ground laughing at something one of them said. 

“Hey, what’s the big idea?” she asks, pouting. 

“I think it’s time to go,” Jeremy says. He turns to Liam. “Can ya make sure she don’t go far? I’ll be back inna few minutes. Gotta find Lori.” Liam nods. 

Laura’s attempting to stand up, laughing when she falls back onto the ground, just sitting there looking confused. 

If they were asked what they thought she looked like, the lads would say that Laura looks adorable right now. Her eyes are shining, sparkling with giddiness and mischief, her expression one of confusion, about as cute as a kitten. 

Laura tries to stand again, this time succeeding in keeping her balance. She smiles happily. Until a short head of bleach blonde hair walks right up to her. As Lori stands in front of Laura, her hands on her hips, Laura’s smile immediately fades. 

“I want you to stay away from my Jeremy,” the shorter of the two slurs, flipping her hair over her shoulder.  

“Ya really think ‘m gonna try ta get with my best friend?” Laura asks sassily, her head clearing a little. 

“I don’t like the way you hang around him so much,” Lori replies. 

Laura’s hands curl into fists, and she can feel anger begin to take the place of the happy buzz she’s acquired. 

“Maybe iff’n ya didn’t treat ‘im like shit, you wouldn’t haveta worry ‘bout ‘im leavin’ ya,” she spits back. 

Lori scoffs, the alcohol running through her system making her braver than usual. If she were sober she’d never actually say these things to Laura, just send glares in her direction. She’s always been a little afraid of the bigger girl, knowing how she’s taken down guys larger than her before giving her an idea of what might happen if she made Laura mad enough.  

“Maybe if you weren’t such a  _whore_  I wouldn’t have to worry at all.” 

Laura snaps, the anger coursing through her veins. This is the last straw. 

The tall girl lunges forward, barely stopped by Harry’s hands gripping onto her elbows. She can’t quite reach Lori, but the small girl backs up anyway, obviously regretting her words. 

“What th’ hell’d you say?” Laura snarls, struggling against the boy’s hold on her. 

Whether she’s being stupid or because she’s drunk, Lori keeps pushing. “You heard me, whore.”

Laura growls, literally growls, and makes another attempt to reach Lori. This time Liam joins Harry in holding her back, noticing the other boy’s grip beginning to loosen. Louis leans back in his seat, taking a sip of his beer, almost wishing Laura had broken loose. He'd been hoping to watch a chick fight tonight. 

“Laura, calm down, just -”

“No! I’ve taken all ‘m gonna take from you!” Laura roars, making Lori take another couple three steps back. 

Suddenly there’s a loud ringing, and then Lori pulls a phone out from inside the half shirt she’s wearing. The skirt didn’t have any pockets big enough for her phone was her excuse when Jeremy asked about it earlier.

“Hey Jeremy,” she says, “Oh, no, I’ll meet you at the truck, I just stopped to talk to your friend  _Lucy_.” 

She lets out a little giggle when Laura lunges for her again before being dragged off, her lean frame thrown over Liam’s shoulder. 

“Hmm?” she asks, and Jeremy repeats himself. 

“Where were ya th’ rest of th’ time?”

“Oh, I just got caught up with some other friends,” she says, lying through her bleached teeth. “You know how I get when I start talking to people.”

“A’right. I’ll see ya at th’ truck then,” he answers, just a little disappointed that he didn’t get to spend much time with his girlfriend. 

“I’ll see you there,” she says with a smile, then hangs up. 

“You know, it’s not nice to make people mad like that,” Louis says, making the short girl turn toward him. “If Liam wasn’t there, she would have beat your ass.” 

Lori scoffs. “And who are  _you_?”

Louis pauses for a moment. That’s the first time in a long time that he’s been asked that. Normally people know who he is right away, before they even hear him talk. 

“Someone,” he answers, not wanting to think it over too much. 

Lori looks down her nose at him - well, not really - and walks away, in the direction of where Jeremy had parked when they first got there. 

Louis shakes his head, polishing off his beer before walking off in the direction Liam and the rest of the lads took Laura. 

When he finds them, Liam’s standing in front of Laura, his hands on her shoulders, talking to her. Laura, however, has her arms crossed and a pout on her face, upset that she didn’t get to fight anyone like she wanted - still wants - to. 

“I get it,” Laura sighs. “ ‘M sorry.”

“Good,” Liam answers, as if he’s talking to a small child. “Then let’s go find Jeremy. We all need some sleep.”

Back at the Dillon’s, Kyle is asleep in his room, the covers thrown everywhere, his arms wrapped around a pillow that’s held close to him. Not quite being eighteen yet, he wasn’t allowed to go to the huge party held every year, and that always pissed him off. He wanted to go dance with Laura and have fun, not stay home and cover for his brother when he didn’t show up the next morning at the breakfast table. 

_Pretty woman, walkin’ down the street. Pretty woman, the kind I like to meet._

_Pretty woman -_

His eyes snap open, knowing exactly who’s calling him. He sleepily scrambles for his phone, putting it to his ear. 

“Hello?” he answers nervously. 

“Kylie bear, there’s a monster out here,” Laura’s slurred whisper says through the phone. 

“Where are you?” he asks with a smile, already sliding to the edge of his bed to put some pants on. 

“In th’ barn, Jerbear said we had ta stay in here ‘cause we was too loud. Meanie.”

“Ya want me ta come out there?” Kyle asks, silently hoping she’ll say yes, she really wants  _him_  out there with her.

“Oh wait, ‘s jus’ Harry. Nevermind,” Laura says, giggling at the end of her sentence. “Well, move yer head!” she mutters after. 

“Ya want a blanket ‘r anythin’?” he asks. Now he’s just trying to come up with a good reason to go out there.

“Nah, whoever this is ‘s really warm. Thanks though,” Laura hiccups. Through the phone, Kyle can hear the faint sound of someone snoring, and someone else shuffling around, probably trying to get comfortable. 

“Okay, I guess I’ll let you go to sleep then,” Kyle says sadly, disappointed. 

“No! Don’t leave, pleeeease?” Laura says, making the boy’s heart jump into his throat. 

“Okay,” he says. “But you should go to sleep.”

“But I don’t wanna,” Laura pouts. 

“Lulu, ya ain’t gonna wanna get up in th’ mornin’ iff’n ya don’t go ta sleep,” Kyle chides softly. 

“Laura, go to sleep,” another voice says from near Laura. 

“Shut up,” she mutters with a yawn.  

When he wakes up, Louis is almost suffocating from the amount of hair that’s in front of his face. Not wanting to face the day yet, he pushes the mass of fibers away from his face, snuggling closer to whoever’s cuddled up to him. They certainly are warm, he thinks. 

Whoever it is must of woken up a little too, because they’re moving, shifting closer to him. Their face goes into his chest, and they take a deep breath. 

“You smell good,” the person says, their voice too groggy for his sleepy brain to tell who it is. 

He answers with a yawn, slinging a leg over them and promptly falling asleep.

When they finally get back to the ranch, it’s around one in the afternoon. Laura seems nervous as she drives back, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel and furrowing her eyebrows. 

She had woken up with hair as crazy as Merida, and it had taken her several minutes to tame it into a braid. Then she had remembered that they weren’t at the ranch, and that her father would be less than happy that they hadn’t fed the horses yet. That of course, led to a rapid waking of the guys and then shoving them into the cab of the truck before speeding out of the Dillon’s driveway and down the road.

She parks the truck, and all six of them climb out, stumbling toward the stables to feed the horses. Granted, they had been given extra hay the night before, but Laura wanted to make sure they were still fed that morning - er, afternoon. 

But when they get there, Eugene is waiting at the door for them.

“You jus’ gettin’ home?” he asks. Laura looks down at her feet. 

“Yessir,” she answers quietly. 

“House. Now,” he says. Laura immediately does what he says, leaving the lads standing there confused. “Continue with whatever you was doin’,” he tells them before walking off to the main house to talk to Laura. 

“Do you think she’s in trouble?” Niall asks quietly once Eugene walks through the door of the house. 

“I don’t know,” Liam answers. “He didn’t seem too mad.”

“That’s what parents do,” Louis says. “They act like they aren’t mad until they start talking, then they get all angry and start yelling.”

“Oh.”

After they finish the chores, they head back into the bunkhouse, sort of waiting for Laura to come back so they know what else to do. 

When she does come back, she’s very quiet. 

“What did he say?” Zayn asks. 

“Said ‘e wants ta talk ta ya’ll,” she answers. 

“Oh.” 

“Jus’ pin it on me, it’s fine,” she says, walking into the kitchen to start on lunch. 

“What?” they exclaim. 

“Pin it on me. It’ll keep ya outta trouble. Go,” she says, nodding toward the main house. “ ‘E ain’t too patient when ‘e’s mad.”

The lads nervously get up off the couches, walking out the door and across the driveway to the main house. 

“In here,” Eugene calls when he hears them walk through the door. They walk into his office, and are surprised to see Laura’s Uncle Jack sitting in the chair across from Eugene, as if they were just talking. 

Eugene sits in the desk chair with his back to the window, his hands folded on the desk in front of him. 

“Afternoon boys,” he says, gesturing for them to sit down in the chairs along the wall. “I s’pose ya’ll know why I’ve called ya in here.”

Liam starts to say something, but Eugene holds up his hand. 

“I know Laura can be…” he turns to Jack “what’s th’ word ya said?”

“Persuasive,” Jack offers. 

“Yes, that’s it. I know she can be persuasive, but ya don’t really have ta do  _everythin_ ’ she says. Especially when it mean y’ain’t doin’ yer job.”

“We’re sorry sir,” Liam says, speaking for all of them. “It won’t happen again.”

“I trust that it won’t,” Eugene says with a smile. “Now go get some sleep. Ya’ll look like somethin’ th’ cat dragged in.”

“Thank you sir.”

With that, the five boys trudge out of the office, leaving just Jack and Eugene. 

“Ya know, I think you was a little hard on ‘er,” Jack says gently, continuing their conversation from earlier. 

“Jack, I gotta be hard on ‘er sometimes. I worry ‘bout ‘er,” Eugene answers. “I don’t want…”

“I get it,” Jack says, saving his brother in law from having to think about what happened all those years ago. “Jus’ ease up on ‘er a little. She’s a big girl, she can take care of ‘erself.”

“I know,” Eugene sighs, looking out the window at where Laura is walking Rebel out of the stable. “I jus’ wanna keep ‘er safe.”


	27. Chapter 27

Zayn’s Point of View

Later that day, we’re back in Laura’s truck, taking another trailer full of cattle to the stockyards. It’s sunny outside, and the scenery is really pretty. Open fields as far as I can see from my spot in the passenger seat. There’s all sorts of plants growing, and we’ve passed several farms with almost every animal that I can think of running around outside of the large barns. 

It seems as if everyone who lives out here drives a pickup truck, because that’s all we’ve passed on the road. Laura waves at each one, like she knows who it is. She probably does, she seems to know a lot of people. It’s nice how even though they’re all spread out, everyone knows each other and they’re friends. It’s like they’re all one big family, except they aren’t, and… I don’t know where I was going with that. Hm.

When we get there, Laura goes in to talk to Sheila and get the tag that she needs to give to the guys at the gates, and when she comes back out she moves the truck and trailer around the large building. 

“What’s in there?” Liam asks. 

“Auction arena, bunch o’ stalls. Why?” Laura asks. 

“Just curious,” he answers. 

“Ya wanna see it?” Laura questions. “I ‘as thinkin’ 'bout goin’ in ta see iff’n they got any good heifers fer sale.” 

She parks the truck, climbing out and giving the tag to Luke, who walks from the gate to meet her. They talk a little, and Laura walks away with a smile on her face, opening the door of the trailer and letting the cattle run out and into the maze of gates inside the huge barn. 

When she climbs back into the driver’s seat, instead of driving out and back onto the road, she pulls into the line of truck and trailers along the fence, shutting the truck off. We climb out, and Laura grabs her wallet from inside her purse, shoving it into her back pocket as she leads us inside.  

We go through a small blue door, and the smell is the first thing that hits me. Animals, dust, and sweat. Then the loud sounds filter through to my ears. Several people shouting, horses neighing and cattle mooing. There’s not much light, but I can see perfectly fine for some reason. 

Laura leads us down a hall, and through a wide doorway, and into a large room, then walks over to a large window with people behind it as the lads and I look around.

There’s a small pen down at the bottom of the bowl shaped space. A single person stands in the small pen, holding onto the halter of a huge horse. 

There’s a man standing on a sort of stage type thing behind the pen, and he’s talking rapidly into a microphone, yelling out prices as people bid on the horse. 

Laura comes back from the window with a packet of papers in her hands, looking intently at them. 

“They got a few heifers fer sale,” she mutters. “Haveta look at ‘em ‘fore buyin’ any.” We follow her down another hallway, this one narrow and darker than the rest. We go down a set of steps, and she turns several corners before stopping in front of a row of gates. It’s like a maze in here, how does she know where to go?

She looks through the gate, and a large, wet nose pokes through the bars, sniffing at her hand. 

“Not quite, sorry sugar,” Laura says, petting the heifer’s nose before moving on to the next pen. The next heifer Laura seems to like, because she looks at it for longer before moving on to the last pen. She looks at the last one, then comes back to the one in the middle. She nods, then turns back to us.

“Lot twenty six. Don’t lemme ferget that,” she says, then we’re walking back out through the maze of gates and hallways until we’re back in the large room with the loud people. 

We walk down a few rows, then Laura slides onto a bench, propping her feet up on the row in front of her. 

“So what’s going on?” I ask as I sit next to her. 

“Well, that feller up there,” she says, gesturing to the guy with the microphone, “ ‘e’s th’ auctioneer. ‘E’s tryin’ ta get ‘em ta bid higher. An’ th’ guys on th’ edge o’ th’ ring, they’re yelling e’ry time they see somebody bid.”

“What’s that guy doing?” I ask, pointing at a man sitting up at the top in the corner. 

“ ‘e’s runnin’ up th’ bids. Tryin’ ta make ‘em pay more.” I nod. 

The horse in the pen is sold, and then another one comes in, then that one is sold, and another comes in, and another, and another, and another until 

“Lot twenty six coming in, this here’s a nice little angus heifer weighing in at six thirty two, we’ll start at fifty cents.” 

Laura puts her hand up, and suddenly there’s so many people shouting that it’s hard to tell what they’re saying. 

“Fifty cents?” I ask, a bit confused by why such a big animal costs so little. 

“They sell ‘em by th’ pound,” Laura answers. “So it’s fifty cents per pound, times six thirty two.” She puts her hand up again. I notice that she’s keeping her eye on the man in the corner, who doesn’t seem to be bidding as much as he was previously. 

“Sold! For two fifty a pound, to that little lady over there!” the man with the microphone says, pointing to Laura. Laura nods, then stands, pulling the lads and I with her as she walks through the maze of hallways until she gets to the door that leads outside. 

Luke stands there, holding the halter of the heifer that Laura just bought. Sheila stands next to him, with a clipboard and a pen, making sure each buyer pays for what they bought before they leave. 

“Well ain’t you a pretty girl?” Laura coos, scratching the heifer between her ears. 

“You got the money?” Luke asks. 

“Course I do.” Laura pats her pockets, pulling her wallet out. “Shit.” She turns to Liam. “Can you go get my purse outta th’ truck? Left the checkbook innit.” He nods, and walks off. 

“Sorry, thought I had it,” Laura apologizes. 

Sheila just smiles. “That’s alright.” 

Liam comes back a few minutes later, handing Laura her purse, muttering something about it being too heavy to just have a few things in it. She digs through it for a second before pulling out a worn leather covered checkbook, writing the amount onto the piece of paper before tearing it out and handing it to Sheila.

“Alright, you’re all set,” Sheila says. 

“Thanks.” 

Laura takes the rope attached to the halter from Luke. 

“Well, let’s get you home then, pretty girl.”

When we do get back to the ranch, the heifer almost refuses to get out of the trailer, setting her feet and pulling back against the rope as Laura tugs on it. 

“C’mon, it ain’t that bad,” she laughs as she pulls a bit harder. Eventually the heifer gets that Laura’s just as stubborn as she is, and gives in, letting Laura lead her out of the trailer and down the lane. They go into a smaller pen, and Laura slides the halter off, letting the heifer go do what she wants. 

Laura lets out a big sigh, hanging the halter on the fencepost next to the gate.

“Well, who’s hungry?”

Laura’s Point of View

I’m riding through the field again, this time I have a destination. I don’t remember where I’m going, but I know I’m going somewhere. 

“Laura!” 

I hear my name being called again, and the woman from before seems to appear from nowhere, this time riding up next to me on her huge black horse. 

“It’s good to see you again, Lomasi,” she says. 

“Who are you?” I ask curiously. 

“You know who I am,” she says simply. “You’ve always known who I am.”

“But I don’t remember.”

She smiles at me, her eyes crinkling. “Yes you do. You remember, you just have to see it first.” 

“See what?” I ask as I tilt my head to one side. “Are you me or somethin’?” 

She laughs, a loud, happy sound not unlike my own. 

“No, I’m not. But I can’t tell you anything else.” 

Suddenly there’s a bright light, and she’s gone, along with the field, and everything else. 

Then my face is wet, and I’m blinking my eyes open. Yankee looks at me for a moment before barking loudly. 

“Go ta sleep, jerk,” I mutter before rolling over, pulling the blankets over my head. “Can’t even sleep ‘round here anymore.” 

I hear someone clear their throat. “Um… Laura?” 

I sleepily turn my head, pulling the blanket down just enough to see who’s standing in my doorway. 

“What?”

“Um,” Niall starts, “It’s eight thirty, and the lads and I - well, mostly me - were wondering if you were -”

“What?” I exclaim. “ ‘T’s eight thirty a’ready?”

He nods, and I jump out of bed, pulling the blanket with me and wrapping it around my shoulders as I run over to my dresser, grabbing a pair of jeans and a shirt from the drawers. 

“I’ll be down inna few minutes, jus’... shut th’ door on yer way out please.” I didn’t think anyone would come in my room, so I hadn’t bothered to put any shorts on last night. I was tired enough after the barn dance that I just slid out of my jeans and fell into bed. 

Niall nods, then walks out, his face turning a bit redder. I look down and see half my leg sticking out of the blanket. 

“This jus’ ain’t gonna be my day, is it?” I wonder aloud. 

Around noon, after I’ve made breakfast and sent the guys to the stables to muck out the stalls, I start working on the agenda for tonight’s meeting of my 4H club. Being the leader has it’s downsides. Such as having to host the meeting every month. And with hosting comes the need to have refreshments. 

I take the last sheet of cookies out of the oven, setting them on the table along with the twelve or so others so that they can cool off. 

“Finally!” I sigh. I slide the oven mitts off of my hands, turning the oven off as I hang up my apron. 

“Ooh! Cookies!” I hear Niall say as he walks into the kitchen. He reaches for one, and I slap his hand away. 

“No.”

He pouts. “Why not? I’m hungry.”

“You’re always hungry,” I laugh as the rest of the guys walk into the bunkhouse. “Don’t eat these. They’re fer th’ kids.”

“What kids?” Harry asks, looking around. 

“Th’ kids that’re gonna be runnin’ ‘round later,” I answer. “There’s a meetin’ tanight. So don’t eat th’ cookies.”

“What would happen if one of them happened to disappear?” Zayn asks.

“I’d cut yer balls off an’ feed ‘em ta my dog,” I answer, laughing when their faces go from joking to shocked and scared. “Seriously though. Don’t eat ‘em. I’ll make some lunch fer ya.” 

“Yay!” Niall cheers, wrapping his arms around my shoulders unexpectedly. 

“Easy,” I laugh. My nose wrinkles. “Ya’ll should prolly take a shower ‘r somethin’ though. You stink.”

“Hey!” he laughs, letting me go. 

“It ain’t my fault you stink,” I joke, lightly hitting his arm. He walks off, along with the rest of the guys, going up to their rooms to get their stuff. 

“Hey! Take yer boots off! I jus’ swept th’ floor!” I call. 

They groan, but do as they’re told. 

“And one more thing,” I say, talking to the group of people in the living room of the bunkhouse, “please make sure ya turn yer forms in ‘bout a week ‘fore th’ due date so I can make sure they’re filled out right. We don’t want anyone goin’ in th’ wrong class on show day. Iff’n ya have any questions, ‘m happy ta help.”

The mothers nod, the kids too busy playing with Yankee to pay attention to what I’m saying. 

“A’right then, meetin’ adjourned! There’s cookies on th’ table, lemonade on th’ counter, help yerselves.”

The kids all jump up, running over to the kitchen table and grabbing handfuls of cookies, then coming back to sit in a circle around Yankee. 

“So, how do the online forms work again?” one of the mothers asks. I sigh internally. This is gonna be a long night.

By the time I’ve answered all of their questions and gotten all of them out the door, it’s dark outside and I haven’t made supper yet. I can see the guys standing at the edge of the loft looking down, silently asking if there’s food for them. 

I stand at the end of the kitchen table, my arms folded and a frown on my face. There’s cookie crumbs everywhere, someone spilled lemonade and didn’t clean it up, and the neat stack of napkins has been thrown all over the room. 

I take a deep breath, reminding myself that there’s other people in the house, and turn around, opening the fridge. 

“So, how ‘bout cookie dough fer supper?” I ask, pulling the bowl out and looking up the stairs at where the guys are. 

A few minute later, we’re sitting on the couches in front of the TV, watching some movie that I’m not really paying attention to. I have the bowl of cookie dough in my lap, and each of us has a spoon, and we’ve just been taking spoonfuls of it out and eating it. Not healthy, I know, but it tastes good. 

We’ve been balancing it out though. There’s a bowl full - well, it was full - of popcorn that got passed around.

The clock says that it’s only nine thirty, but my eyes are already starting to close. I don’t want to get up though. I’m comfy right here. They won’t mind if I just fall asleep, right?

Zayn’s Point of View

Out of the corner of my eye, I can see Laura keep nodding off, her eyes snapping back open each time, and she looks around the dark room like she doesn’t want anyone to see her fall asleep. 

She yawns, then sets the bowl of cookie dough onto the table in front of her, pulling her legs up underneath herself and curling up on the couch, her head laying lightly on my shoulder, as if she isn’t sure if it’s okay with me. 

I glance down at her, then move so that I’m leaning more toward her, giving her a comfortable rest for her head. 

Sometime before the movie ends, she falls asleep, snuggled in between Liam and I, and when the rest of the lads get up to go to bed, Laura won’t wake up. 

“So do we leave her down here?” Harry asks. 

“I’ve got her,” I say, moving so I can pick her up to carry her upstairs. Once she’s off the couch, Laura moves, as if she’s going to wake up, then turns toward me, grabbing a handful of my shirt as her head falls onto my shoulder.

The lads and I make our way up the stairs, then I carry Laura into her room as the others go into their rooms to go to bed. 

I set her down on the mattress, then pull the blankets over her. Yankee jumps up to lay next to her, and I smile as she cuddles up to her dog as I walk out the door.   

Laura’s Point of View

On Sunday morning, I'm just standing up, my purse and Bible in hand, ready to go home from church, when...

"Lulu!" Hanna says, hugging my legs. "Are you coming to our house today?" 

I shake my head, a smile on my face. "Nope, gotta go home an' make lunch fer th' guys. Maybe next week."

"Aww... but Lulu..." I feel my phone start buzzing in my pocket, and pull it out.

"Hang on a sec, Hanna."

I take a look at the screen and see Liam's name, so I answer it. 

"Hey, what's up?" 

"It's Niall. Something's wrong. I think - we think - he's sick," Liam answers, sounding worried.

"Alright... what's wrong with 'im?" I say a quick goodbye to Hanna, telling her I'll see her next week, and begin weaving through the crowd of people to get the door. 

Liam’s Point of View

"Um, he's throwing up, and he's really pale," I reply. 

"Does 'e have a fever?" She asks. It sounds like she's in a big group of people. 

"Um, I don't know."

I hear her sigh, then the noise in the background stops. She must be outside. 

"Put yer hand on 'is face. Does it feel hot?" 

I walk into the bathroom, where Niall is sitting on the floor, and feel his forehead with the back of my hand. 

"He's like, burning up," I tell Laura.

"A'right. Is ‘e wearing tons of clothes?" 

"No, he's just in shorts."

"Alright. Don't move 'im. I'll be there soon as I can."

"Okay." 

I hear her truck start, then she asks,  "how long's ‘e been pukin’?"

"About ten minutes."

"Did ‘e feel weird 'r sick earlier?"

"He said his stomach hurt about ten minutes after you left."

"Has ‘e eaten anythin' weird?"

I pull the phone from my ear and ask Niall, "did you eat anything different from normal?" He shakes his head in answer.

"He says he hasn't," I relay to Laura. 

"Okay. Um..." she pauses for a second. "Did ‘e eat th’ yogurt that was in th' fridge?"

"I'll ask." I repeat the question to Niall, and he nods. "He says yes." 

"That's prolly what it is then. That yogurt was bad. I jus’ hadn't thrown it out yet." 

"Then what do we do?" I ask.

"Gotta wait it out, let it get outta ‘is system."

“Alright.”

“I’ll be home soon. Keep ‘im comfy till then.”  

“Okay. See you then.”

She hangs up, and I sit on the floor across from Niall. 

“She says she’s coming. Are you gonna throw up again?” I want to have time to get out of the bathroom if that’s going to happen again. I’ve never been able to handle the smell. 

Niall shakes his head, coughing slightly. “No, not… not at the moment.” His voice sounds rough and scratchy.

Soon I hear the rumble of Laura’s truck, then Laura’s boots on the wooden floor. 

“Aw, sugar,” she coos once she sees Niall. She walks over, as if she doesn’t care that he’s half naked, and sets a hand on his forehead. She starts asking him questions as she stands up, walking over to the sink and wetting a washcloth. 

“Sounds like food poisonin’. Gonna haveta wait it out,” she diagnoses, setting the wet cloth of his forehead. “Ya had th’ day off tamarra anyway, so I s’pose it’s not bad timin’,” she adds, trying to make light of the situation. “Better go up ta bed. Stay layin’ down n’less ya haveta move. Try n’ sleep.” 

Laura’s Point of View

I walk into the gym at the high school, pulling my bag from my shoulder and setting it on the bleachers. As I sit down to put my shoes on, a shadow falls over me. 

I look up and see our coach, Rafael, standing there.

“There you are. We were starting to wonder if you were coming early or not,” he says with a smile. 

“Sorry. Had a sick person at home. Slowed me down a ‘lil bit,” I apologize. 

“It’s alright. Do you need me to tape your ankle?” 

I nod. It’s been sore since I sprained it last week, and Rafe had told me when it happened that I should probably have it taped for practice and games. He grabs the tape that I hand to him, and begins wrapping it snugly around my ankle. 


	28. Chapter 28

Laura's Point of View

I walk into the old high school, making my way down the hall to the open door with the FFA emblem on it.

"There you are!" Ashley shouts once she sees me walk in. "We've been waiting for you!"

"Sorry, got a little tied up with... stuff," I reply, losing my train of thought when I see Rob looking at me. I blink, looking away as I take my seat next to Ann. "What're we meetin' fer?"

Ashley sighs loudly, as if she wants to be extra annoying. "The banquet? Seriously."

"I know that. We a'ready planned th' thing at th' last meetin'. Why're we meetin' ag'in iff'n we a'ready know what's gonna happen?"

"Because, we need to practice!" Ashley whines. "Rob, don't we need to practice?"

We all look up at our president, who seems a little annoyed, like he doesn't really think we need this meeting any more than the rest of us do. He didn't even call for the meeting, it was Ashley.

"I s'pose it wouldn't hurt. We could try it without the script," he says, "but we already know most of it."

"But it's next week!" Ashley says. "Don't any of you think we aren't prepared?"

"I'm feelin' pretty prepared," I say. I know my lines, and where to stand. I could do this banquet in my sleep.

"Just... let's run it once or twice through. Then we'll call it good," Rob says, picking up the gavel as Ashley makes heart eyes at him. Back off, you know I like him.

The rest of the morning goes like that, with Ashley constantly asking Rob to read his part again, then asking him how to pronounce things that she could have just as easily sounded out herself.

Not that I don't like listening to him talk, but when he sounds irritated, it's not as much fun.

By the time I go back out to the truck to drive home, I've had about enough of people for the day.

Harry's Point of View

I'm sitting on the couch with Louis when Laura gets back. We've been searching through the channels on the TV to see if we can find anything good. Needless to say, there hasn't been anything good all morning.

Laura walks through the door, and from the angle I'm sitting (completely upside down), it looks like she's walking on the ceiling.

"Hey, how'd you get on the ceiling?" I ask goofily as she walks by. She looks over at me, shaking her head with a small smile that doesn't quite reach her eyes. "Hey, what's wrong?"

She shakes her head again, sitting down on the couch next to me.

"It ain't nothin' ta worry 'bout. Jus' some stupid shit. Doesn't matter."

"If it doesn't matter why are grumpy?" I ask, poking her side.

" 'M not grumpy," she says, leaning away from me.

"Denial. First step," I point out.

"I ain't 'n alcoholic," she giggles.

"Are you sure?" I ask, tickling her side.

"No! Don't!" she laughs, squirming away from me. She stands up, ruffling my hair before walking up the stairs to her room.

"It's probably that one guy," Louis mutters once the door shuts.

"What?" I ask.

"You know, Rob? The guy she keeps talking about?" he says, looking at me. I raise an eyebrow. "You haven't been paying attention, have you?"

I shrug, not really knowing what to say.

"Haz, she talks about him all the time. It's kind of obvious. She probably likes him or something."

"I didn't think about that," I admit.

Laura's Point of View

We get to the fairgrounds the next morning, and pile out of the truck, making our way into the large barn right inside the gate.

"There you are!" a voice says, putting a smile on my face.

"Grandpa," I say.

My other grandfather, Daddy's father, is the manager at the fairgrounds. He helps keep everything running and organizes the events that go on there. The big event during the summer is the county fair, the reason we're here. We have to pack all the ribbons and trophies for the different shows that go on. I've been helping with this part of the fair since I was little.

"They're all ready for you," he says, motioning to the tables full of boxes in the large room.

"Thanks. Should be done in a couple days."

"Are ya sure you don't want help?" I shake my head.

"I brought help."

A few hours later, we've gone through at least half of the boxes, pulling the ribbons out and laying them on the table, sorting them so we can pack them up for the different shows.

"Laura?" I hear Liam call.

"What?" I answer, looking over at him.

"What's - " he looks down at the ribbon in his hand " - 'best udder' mean?"

I pause for a second, then look over at him.

"Means best udder, what else would there be?" He still looks confused. "Y'know, udder. On a cow? Where th' milk comes from?" The confusion stays on his face, and I'm not sure how else to explain it. "Ya don't..." I trail off, trying to think of an explanation that will make sense. I thought everyone knew what this stuff was. "Cow boobs? D'ya get that?"

Realization crosses his face, and his mouth falls open for a second. "Ooohh..."

I nod, happy that I got my point across.

"That's weird," he says quietly, going back to the box he was working on.

Louis' Point of View

Two weeks. It's been two fucking weeks since Laura has acknowledged my existence. I didn't think it would bother me as much as it does, but it's really starting to get under my skin. She won't even look at me anymore.

Not only that, but the nightmares have been getting worse. I can hardly make it through an entire night anymore without waking up soaked in a cold sweat, shaking from some scary image that takes hours to get out of my head.

Each time Yankee has been waiting next to my bed, ready to jump up on top of me and calm me down. He hardly ever stays in Laura's room anymore. I'm thankful for that, but I almost want a person to cuddle with instead. Waking up with a faceful of dog hair isn't my cup of tea.

I don't think I've cried out or anything in the middle of my dreams, because the lads haven't said anything about it, and they would usually tell me if something like that happens. I haven't told them about the nightmares, though I'm not sure why. It hasn't come up, I guess.

We're still not done with all these ribbons. What could possibly need this many different awards? I look over at the box I'm pulling things out of.

 **Clark County Fair** , it says in bold letters on the address label.

So these are for the county fair? I thought those had ferris wheels and roller coasters and things like that. What would they need ribbons for?

I shrug it off, thinking that it probably doesn't concern me, so I won't have to worry about it.

After we're done for the day, Laura asks if we want to go for ice cream, and of course we say yes, so she drives over to a small building at the edge of the fairgrounds, knocking on the window.

It opens, and the same man that greeted us the first day that we were here looks out.

"Laura," he says happily. "All done for today?"

"Yessir. Prolly gonna finish tamarra."

"That's good." He looks over to us. "Ya'll here fer some ice cream?"

"Iff'n ya got some," Laura replies with a grin.

I lay in bed that night, not wanting to fall asleep, but too tired not to. I don't want another nightmare. I'm not sure if they could get any worse, but I hope they don't.

I've tried everything - drinking tea before I go to bed, reading a book, talking to my mum, thinking of happy things - nothing seems to be helping.

So I've resorted to trying not to sleep. Even though I know it isn't possible. The blankets are too soft, the pillows cradling my head just right.

Eventually my eyes close, and sleep takes over.

Laura's Point of View

I wake up in the middle of the night, thinking that I heard someone scream. I look over at the clock. 3:35. Oh well, back to - wait, what was that? Someone is definitely screaming.

I jump out of bed, running to the door, then out of it, the sound of my bare feet pounding against the hardwood filling the air.

I follow the tortured sound, and my feet carry me through the door next to mine, into Louis' room.

In the dark, I can make out the outline of his limbs, thrashing around in his bed, kicking the blankets everywhere.

I don't even think, I just run over to him, grabbing him by the shoulders and shaking him, trying to get him to wake up.

"Louis! Wake up!"

His eyes snap open, filled with terror, and the screaming immediately stops.

It takes him a few seconds to figure out that it's me sitting in front of him, and once it clicks, what he does surprises me.

He doesn't say a word, he just wraps his arms around me, pulling me toward him and burying his face in my chest. He hugs me so tightly that I can feel the pendant of my necklace digging into my skin, pressed there by his face.

He starts crying, probably scared out of his mind. I sigh, and wrap my arms around his shoulders. It's a good thing he wasn't in any real danger.

"Shh... hey, 's okay," I whisper, trying to get him to calm down. "Nothin's gonna get ya, 'm right here."

I hear someone clear their throat, and I look over to see the other four boys standing in the doorway, looking worried, but mostly tired.

"I got 'im. He'll be a'right," I tell them. "Go back ta bed."

They nod, and sleepily turn and walk back to their rooms.

Once they're gone, I turn my attention back to Louis, who's sobbing so badly I can feel it shaking his body. My hand rises and my fingers begin running through his hair, something I've learned always helps calm Jeremy down.

"Shh... hey..." I say softly, starting to gently rock back and forth like a mother does to get her child to calm down.

" 'S alright. Yer alright." Nothing I'm doing is getting him to stop crying, so I do the only thing I can think of that I haven't tried yet.

" _Hush-a-bye, don't you cry. Go to sleep my little baby._

_When you wake, you shall have, all the pretty little ponies._

_In your bed, Mama said, baby's riding off to dreamland,_

_One by one, they've begun, dance and prance for little baby._

_"Blacks and bays, dapples and grays, running in the night._

_When you wake, you shall have, all the pretty little ponies_."

As I sing, I feel his arms constrict even tighter around me, if that's possible. He seems scared that I'll leave. But he doesn't have to worry, I won't. Not anymore.

" _Can't you see the little ponies, dance before your eyes._

 _All the pretty little ponies, will be there when you arise_."

I try to keep my voice calm and soothing, and I think it's helping Louis relax, as his crying is slowly becoming quieter. It's always helped me, though I can't remember where I learned the words. I've always seemed to know it.

" _Can't you see the little ponies, dance before your eyes._

_All the pretty little ponies, will be there when you arise._

_Hush-a-bye, don't you cry. Go to sleep my little baby._

_When you wake, you shall have all the pretty little ponies._

_All the pretty little ponies_."

His sobs are now quiet sniffles, and I think he's slowly falling back asleep. I can feel his grip loosening a little.

I keep humming the lullaby, softly running my fingers through his messy hair.

I shift a little, trying get comfortable, and Louis quickly tightens his grip on me.

"Hey, hey, hey... 'S okay, I ain't goin' nowhere," I say softly, laying back against the pillows, pulling him with me.

" 'M sorry Laura," he mutters hoarsely.

"Shh... don't worry 'bout it now. Wait till mornin'," I reply.

"Will you be here in the morning?" he asks.

"Mhm. Be right here when ya wake up."

"Promise?"

I press my lips to the top of his head.

"Promise. Now go ta sleep. We can talk in th' mornin'."

Soon I go back to humming, and after awhile the pair of us drift back to sleep.


	29. Chapter 29

Laura’s Point of View

I wake up the next morning, and it takes me a minute to remember why I’m not in my room. When it all comes flooding back, I wonder what the nightmare was about. 

I look down to see Louis still sleeping peacefully, his arms wrapped tightly around my waist and his head resting on my chest. My hand automatically begins combing through his hair as I lay there in the tangle of limbs. 

I feel him stir, and remove my hand from his hair. He yawns, but doesn’t get up. I know his eyes are open. I can feel his eyelashes brush my skin as he blinks the sleep from his eyes.

“Why’d you stop?” he asks in his groggy morning voice.

“How’d ya sleep?” I ask, not wanting to say that I didn’t want him to tell me to stop.

“Better than I have for awhile,” he answers. 

“That’s good,” I reply, being careful with my answers.

“So… what now?” he asks. 

“Whaddya mean?” I’m not sure what he’s asking.

“Where does this put us now? Like, what are we?”

Oh…

“Where d'ya wanna be?” I ask, not knowing my own answer. 

“I dunno. Are you gonna ignore me anymore?” I shake my head. 

“Naw, I ain’t. It was gettin’ hard ta do anyway.”

“Good. I don’t like it when you ignore me. I like talking to you.”

I smile. “I like talkin’ ta you too.” There’s a small pause, then he speaks again.

“What time is it?”

“ ‘Round seven forty,” I answer calmly. 

“Do you have to go? Are you still gonna make breakfast for the other lads? What about your run? Do you have to go feed the horses?” he babbles, turning his head so he can look up at me. He paid attention to to all that?

I just shake my head. 

“There’s cereal in th’ cupboard an’ milk in th’ fridge, they can make breakfast fer themselves an’ feed th’ horses. An’ one mornin’ without a run ain’t gonna kill me. Why, d’ya want me ta leave?” 

I feel him shake his head. “Mm-mm. Stay… Please.” 

He hugs me tighter, and I laugh a little. 

“Alright, I’ll stay as long as ya want. I ain't goin’ nowhere.”

“K,” he pauses, then says, “you still didn’t answer my question.”

“Which question was that?”

“What are we?” 

“Well, we ain’t not talkin’,”  I say. I don’t really know what this makes us. I don’t hate him, don’t think I ever really did, but at the same time, I don’t feel like kissing him. Ech.

“Uh huh…”

“I dunno. How's friends sound?” 

“Friends… I like it.”

“K. Friends it is then.”

“Alright.” 

We lay there for awhile, letting the silence surround us.

“Umm... friend?” he asks.

“What?” 

“Will you pet my hair again? It feels good.”

I sigh overdramatically. “I s’pose… If I have ta…”

My hand finds it’s way to his hair again, and he sighs as my nails scratch his scalp, closing his eyes and relaxing. 

“So, friend?” I ask.

“Hmm?” he hums.

“Ya gonna tell me what th’ nightmare was ‘bout?” 

He doesn’t say anything, and I think I might have asked the wrong question. 

“Ya don’t have ta tell me,” I assure him, “but if ya wanna talk, ‘m here.”

"Thanks." He still doesn't tell me, and I let it go. If he doesn't want to tell me, he doesn't have to. 

Louis' point of view 

Relief floods through me when she says she won't ignore me anymore. I don't know how much longer I could have taken it. 

She's so soft and warm, I don't want to ever get up. I like laying here with her. It's comfortable. 

I didn't think she would be this soft. I thought she was all muscle, and that she'd be all uncomfortable to lay on, but I was wrong. Course it probably makes a difference that my head is laying on her chest, but the rest of her is just as soft. Not too much, but just enough. 

I know it has to be past ten when I hear my stomach growling, but I don't say anything because I don't want to get up. 

"You hungry?" Laura asks. 

"A little," I admit. "but I'm comfy and I don't wanna get up."

"Me either," she agrees. Then she whistles, and seconds later I hear the clicking sound of Yankee’s paws on the hardwood, walking into the room. Laura says something, in what sounds like another language, and the big dog walks back out.

"What was that?" I ask curiously. 

“Cherokee,” she replies simply. I hear Yankee come trotting back into the room, and she says something else, reaching over to grab something. “Told ‘im ta go get us somethin’ ta eat.”

Then she pulls a bag up and sets it on the bed. 

“Sit up though. Y’ain’t eatin’ food offa me,” she says. 

I sit up, my back cracking loudly as I do so. 

“Ya a’right?” she asks as she sits up, setting a bag of chocolate covered pretzels in between us.

“Yeah. I’m alright.”

She raises an eyebrow, but doesn’t question it, holding the now open bag out to me. I grab a handful of pretzels from inside, putting a few in my mouth. 

We sit there for about an hour, eating chocolate covered pretzels and just talking. It’s nice to talk to her again. 

The ignoring had gotten to the point where the lads weren’t even asking what happened anymore, they were just giving me sympathetic looks, not knowing what to say. 

But then we have to go finish packing up all the ribbons, so Laura goes into her room to change, and then down to the kitchen to make lunch for us before we leave. 

When I sit down, there’s a small smiley face drawn on my napkin, and it makes me smile. 

Once we finish eating and wash the dishes, we all pile into Laura’s truck, and she starts it up, turning on the radio. 

Wild thing, you make my heart sing,

you make everything groovy

“Hey,” Laura says with a smile, turning the song up, “this ‘s jus’ a good day.”

After we’ve finally finished with all the ribbons and packed them into the boxes, we all pile into the truck and head back to the ranch. 

Once we get out of town, a loud siren blares. making Laura look in the rearview mirror. 

 “Shit,” she curses, shifting the truck into a lower gear and pulling over before parking on the side of the road. The cop car pulls off, stopping right behind her, and the door opens, the officer getting out. 

Laura rolls down her window as he walks up. 

“Excuse me ma’am, can you step out of the vehicle?” he asks, and Laura stiffens. 

She takes a deep breath, then opens her door, climbing out and shutting it behind her. 

“Can I ask where you’re going, ma’am?” the officer asks, crossing his arms. 

“You jus’ did,” she says coldly. 

Wait a second. I know you’re usually sassy, Laura, but shouldn’t you not sass a police officer?

“Where are you going?” he asks, looking a little angry. 

“Home. Jus’ came from th’ fairgrounds. Packin’ ribbons, like I been doin’ fer th’ past ten years,” Laura answers. “Not that you’d remember.”

He mutters something that I can’t make out, then asks, “you got a permit to be carrying that?” and motions to the rifle hanging over the backseat of the truck. 

“Yeah, I do. You went with me ta get it,” Laura says. “Or d’ya not remember that either?”

“No, actually I don’t. Would you care to refresh my memory?” he answers in a clipped tone.

“A’right. You came over, drove me ta th’ station, got th’ permit, an’ then we went out ta eat. You thought you ‘as bein’ smooth an’ slidin’ a date in,” Laura says, sounding almost bored. 

“Your point?”

“It ‘as our anniversary, an’ you didn’t even remember. Two fuckin’ months meant nothin’ ta you?” Wait, they dated? 

“They did too!” he protests. “They meant everything to me!” It’s clear he’s getting mad, his face is red and his hands are curling into fists. He takes a deep breath. “They still do,” he adds, his voice considerably softer than before. 

“No, that ain’t happenin’,” Laura says, shaking her head. “Not after what you did. We’re done. That’s th’ way it is.” 

"But Lulubelle-"

"Don't you Lulubelle me," she spits out.

“Please?” he asks, moving closer to her, pinning her against the side of the truck. Whoa, slow down buddy. “I’ve changed, I’m different.”

“Get yer hands off me!” Laura shouts, shoving him away from her. She stalks toward him, making him back away, his hands in the air as if he’s afraid of her. “We. Are. Done. You bastard.” She spits in his face, then turns around, climbing back into the truck and slamming the door shut. 

“Laura?” I start. She turns to look at me, her jaw set, her lips pressed into an angry line. “Nevermind.” 

She looks in the rearview mirror, seeing that he’s walking back to his car. Then she flips a switch next to the steering wheel, shifting the truck into drive and mashing the pedal to the floor, zooming away and leaving a cloud of thick black smoke behind.  

We’re almost back to the ranch by the time her white knuckle grip on the steering wheel loosens up, her fury seeming to finally leave. 

“So, who was that?” Zayn asks quietly. 

“That,” Laura replies, laughing dryly, “was Paul.”

“Oh.”

“Yep,” she says, and that seems to be the end of it. “Well, we got stuff ta do ‘fore tanight. Best get to it.” 

Niall’s Point of View

After we’ve done some chores and fed the horses, we drive over to the Wilder’s for the usual Friday night barn dance. Laura is back to her talkative, smiley self, but there’s still a hint of something under all of it, like she’s still mad about whatever happened. He - Paul - must have done something really bad to get her that upset from just talking to him. 

But now we’re all having fun, dancing and laughing, all getting along.

“Dammit, I told ya not ta play that one!” Laura shouts across the table at Louis, a smile on her face. They’d paired up for a card game, and they were losing, but still having fun with it. 

“Well it’s not my fault! I don’t have any good cards!” he says back, laughing. 

“Aaaand we win!” Erica cheers, putting her last card onto the table, leaning over to give Liam a celebratory high five.  

“Goddammit,” Laura groans, tossing her cards onto the table. She looks over at Louis and shrugs. “We tried.” 

“An’ ya failed,” Erica says, rubbing it in. Laura shoves her arm, nearly making the smaller girl fall from her chair. 

“You know ‘m shit at cards, ya shoulda expected it,” she laughs. “I oughta go, we’re up next.” 

She stands from the table, downing the rest of her drink before heading off in the direction of where the two Dillon brothers are. I watch her go for a second, until I’m distracted by another head of dark brown hair moving through the crowd. 

“What are you staring at, Nialler?” I hear Louis ask loudly, making my face turn red as Ann turns around, looking in my direction. 

“You know, it’s lovely that you’re back to being loud and happy, but do you have to make me miserable?” I ask him with a fond smile, reaching over to mess up his hair.  

He shrugs, a smile still on his face. 

“So do you like her?” he asks, quieter than his earlier question. 

“We kissed, of course I like her,” I reply. “I’m just not sure if she’s serious about this.”

“About what?”

“You know, like, us. Together?” That didn’t even make sense in my head. But Louis seems to understand what I meant, nodding his head thoughtfully. 

“Maybe you should ask her about it,” he suggests. 

I shrug, looking back over at Ann, who’s talking to Laura as the other girl takes a shot of whiskey, something I’ve learned is a usual thing for her. She takes at least one shot before she sings, every time. 

Laura nods at something that Ann says, a mischievous smile finding it’s way onto her face. I see her eyes dart toward the side of the barn that I’m on, and she says something to Ann that makes her smile. Then she walks off, leaving Ann to sit by herself on a hay bale. 

“Evenin’ everybody!” I hear Jeremy’s voice shout. “We got a few more songs fer ya tonight.”

They start playing their guitars, the sound a bouncy rhythm.

**(A/N - The title of the song is As She's Walking Away by Zac Brown Band and Alan Jackson)**

Jeremy and Laura both start the song together, smiles on their faces. 

**_We never spoke a word but every thought she had I heard from across the room._ **

**_We were standing face to face I couldn't find the words to say._ **

**_Gimme one more move_**.

Then Jeremy sings the next line alone.

**I don't even know her name. I guess foolish pride's to blame**

_**Now I'm falling in love as she's walking away.** _

_**And my heart won't tell my mind to tell my mouth what it should say.** _

_**I may have lost this battle live to fight another day.** _

_**Now I'm fallin in love as she's walkin away.** _

Jeremy looks over at Laura as he sings alone. 

**Wise man next to me did say about the one that got away**

Laura takes the next part, her eyes on me as she sings.

_Son I missed my chance._

_Don't you let regret take place of the dreams you have to chase._

_Ask her to dance._

She nods toward Ann as she says the next line.

_Go on son_

_You might fall down on your face_

_Roll the dice and have some faith_

I smile, then stand as Louis slaps me on the shoulder, catching what Laura meant. I look around for Ann, and find her sitting not too far away. I make my way over to her, smiling when her eyes light up. 

“Hey, do you wanna dance?” I ask. 

“Sure,” she says, a smile on her face. She takes my hand and we weave through the crowd to the dance floor, joining about twenty other people who are already dancing. She wraps her arms around my neck and I set my hands on her waist, and we sway back and forth, smiling at each other. 

**_But don't be fallin in love as she's walkin away._ **

_**When your heart won't tell your mind to tell your mouth what it should say.** _

_**May have lost this battle live to fight another day.** _

_**Don't be fallin in love as she's walkin away.** _

I don’t even have to say anything, I can tell just by the way that she looks up at me as we move together, she’s got the same thing going through her head as I do.

_**You might fall down on your face** _

_**Roll the dice and have some faith** _

It’s a nice feeling, knowing someone likes you for who you are, not because of who you are. One good thing that came out of this summer so far is that there are people who like me for me. Even if I’m only going to see them for a couple more months. 

_**Don't be fallin in love as she's walkin away** _

_**When your heart won't tell your mind to tell your mouth what it should say.** _

_**May have lost this battle live to fight another day.** _

_**Don't be fallin,** _

_**Fallin in,** _

_**Fallin in love as she's walkin away.** _

_**Hey...** _


	30. Chapter 30

I wake up Sunday morning, fully expecting to walk out the door to a house filled with snores. However, I’m pleasantly surprised to see all the guys sitting on the couches downstairs, wide awake and - well, all but one - dressed. 

“Harry, get yer ass off my couch,” I call as I walk down the stairs, going into the kitchen to start breakfast. “at least put some pants on ‘r somethin’.” It’s lovely that he’s gotten comfortable enough here to walk around without clothes on, but at the same time, that’s not something I want to see at the moment. 

“When are we leaving?” he asks. 

“I can’t hear ya iff’n y’ain’t wearin’ pants,” I reply, pulling some milk from the fridge. 

“Hey Laura, when are we leaving?” Louis asks.

“ ‘Round eight.”

“Harry, we’re leaving around eight,” he says. I can hear the grin in his voice. 

“Thanks,” Harry mutters. I can hear him walking up the stairs, and wait until I hear the door to his room shut before I turn back around. 

“Good morning,” Liam says cheerfully. 

“Why’re ya’ll up so early?” I ask. “Ya do know it’s Sunday, right?”

“Yeah. we were gonna see if we could come with you. You know, to church,” Niall says. 

“Oh. Sure, iffn ya want,” I reply, a bit surprised. I wasn’t expecting it. 

Louis’ Point of View

“So waddya wanna do?” Laura asks the two Dillons after we’ve eaten a lunch of grilled cheese, at Hanna’s request. 

Sheila had asked Laura if she would watch the two youngest in the family while she and Jim went to visit someone in the hospital. The older boys were going to work on one of their trucks, so Hanna and Johnny would have been in the way. Laura was more than happy to take them, almost as happy as the two kids were to come with us. 

“Play princesses!” Hanna shouts, bouncing up and down in her chair. 

“You sure?” Laura asks. “What ‘bout you?” she asks Johnny, who shrugs.

“Long ‘s I ain’t th’ prince, ‘m fine with it,” he says, making a face. 

“Ew! No!” Hanna squeals. “That’s gross. You be the bad guy.”

“Yes!” Johnny says.

“And you can be the queen,” she tells Laura. 

“A’right,” Laura says with a smile, leaning on the counter across from where the little girl is sitting. 

Before long, all of us are told what to do by the little blonde, and split off into two groups. Queen Laura, King Liam, and the two royal guards - Zayn and Niall, go with Hanna and start working on a pillow fort type thing that’s going to be their castle. Harry and I follow Johnny under the kitchen table, because we’re the bad guys and the bad guys always go under the table, Johnny says. 

“So what’s the plan?” I ask, trying not to hit my head on the underside of the table as I sit down. 

“Alright, we gotta kidnap one of th’ girls. That’s how it works. Then th’ King’s going to come lookin’ for ‘em, then we fight, an’ we win, an’ then we’re th’ kings,” Johnny explains. 

I nod. That’s a pretty good plan. 

“Which one are we going to get?”

Hanna would probably be easier to carry, but Laura would try to make to interesting. 

“Laura. Then we can tickle ‘er,” he answers with a smile.

“What? She’s ticklish?” I ask. I didn’t know that.

Johnny nods. “It’s th’ worst on ‘er feet.” 

“How do we get past the guards?” Harry asks. 

“Freeze ‘em, duh,” Johnny says. “Th’ freeze ray always works.”

“Okay. This sounds like it’ll work pretty well.”

About five or so minutes later, after we’ve completed the planning of the plan, all three of us sneak out from under the table, and crawl over to the enormous pillow fort that they’ve made. Harry and Johnny go around one side, and I split off, going the other way. 

I can hear Hanna talking, saying something about how nice it is to have everyone there for the tea party, and then Laura says something, but is cut off by Hanna squealing.

“No! They’re attacking the castle!”

I take that as my cue, and pull on the sheet that’s been thrown over the top of the pillows. It falls down, revealing where ‘the royal family’ is sitting. 

“Get ‘er!” Johnny shouts, and I dive in, grabbing Laura and throwing her over my shoulder, then scrambling to run back to the kitchen.

“Hey, put me down!” Laura laughs, hitting my back with her fists.

I scramble under the table, following Johnny and Harry, pulling Laura with me.  

“What’s th’ big idea?” Laura asks, scowling and crossing her arms. 

“None of your business, missy,” Johnny answers. “Tickle ‘er!”

He jumps on top of her, his small hands digging into her sides. She falls back onto the floor with him on top of her in a fit of laughter. 

“Johnny!” she squeals. “Stop it!”

“Get ‘er feet!” he tells us. Laura’s eyes go wide.

“No! No, no, no -” she pleads as Harry and I each grab a foot. I run my fingers up the arch of her foot, and she shrieks in laughter, her limbs flailing in an effort to get away.

“No! Stop it!” she laughs, her chest heaving in an effort to get air into her lungs. 

“Attack!” Hanna’s voice shouts. 

Then the table moves, and we’re surrounded by the other lads and the small girl. 

“Lulu, you wasn’t s’posed ta get tickled!” she complains. Then she’s tickling the tall girl too, and the shrieking laughter starts up again. 

Zayn’s Point of View

After the tickling stops and we all calm down, Laura suggests that we go fishing. Hanna and Johnny jump at the idea, quickly sliding their shoes on and running outside. 

“Ya’ll wanna come?” Laura asks as she slides her boots onto her feet. 

I shrug, standing from the couch and walking over to the door. The other lads follow, sliding their shoes on before accompanying Laura down the steps and out to the stables. 

“Hanna, what’re ya doin’?” Laura asks once she sees the little girl struggling to pull a saddle from it’s rack in the tack room. 

“Gettin’ a saddle,” Hanna grunts, pulling hard. 

“Y’want help?” Laura asks. 

“No, I got it,” Hanna replies. 

“Lulu!” Johnny calls. Laura turns to walk out the door. 

“Better saddle up,” she tells us. “ ‘t’s kind of a long ways ta th’ crik.” Then she walks out the door, looking for Johnny. 

A few minutes later we’re all saddled up and riding away from the main cluster of buildings, into the fields. Laura’s in the front, Hanna next to her on Penny, and Louis on her other side. Johnny’s riding in the back of the group with the rest of us lads on his pony, asking Harry why his hair is so long. 

“It’s growing, doesn’t your hair do that?” the older lad replies. 

“Well yeah, but Ma makes me get it cut when it gets ta be long. Don’t yer Ma do that?” Johnny asks. 

“She used to,” Harry answers with a smile. “But then I grew up and now I get to decide how long my hair is.”

I can almost hear the boy mulling it over in his head, his eyebrows furrowing together over his bright eyes. 

“I wanna grow up,” he says quietly after a moment, making the lads and I laugh. 

“Hey Lulu!” he calls. 

“What?” Laura asks, turning around in her saddle to look at him.

“Are we there yet?”

“A’most,” Laura replies. “Right over that there ridge, ‘member? You been here a’fore.”

“Oh yeah!” the boy says, a bright smile taking over his face. 

“Race ya!” Hanna shouts, digging her knees into Penny’s sides. The little pony takes off running, Johnny and his pony following them. 

“Wait fer me!” Laura shouts, nudging Rebel into pursuit. 

The lads and I follow, our horses’ hooves stirring up quite a bit of dust that billows out behind us. 

When we reach the water, we tie our horses to the branches of the trees nearby, then sit on the bank and watch as Laura and Johnny get everything ready. 

“An’ then, he said ya wrap it ‘round th’ hook,” Johnny tells Laura, explaining how Jeremy told him to put the worm on the hook. 

“Then what?” Laura asks. 

“Well then yer done, silly!” he says. 

“No way! Gotta be more’n that!” she says in mock awe.

“Naw, that’s it,” Johnny replies. 

“Naw…” Laura says, reaching over to tickle the boy.

Before long, they’ve both got their hooks in the water and all of us are sitting on the ground, watching the water. Except Hanna, who climbs up into the tree to see if she can see any fish. Once in awhile Johnny asks something, and Laura answers, but other than that, it’s pretty quiet. 

“So you do this for fun?” Louis asks, laying on the ground next to Laura. 

“Yessir. It’s relaxin’,” she answers quietly. 

“Well, I think it’s boring…” Louis mutters, poking her side. 

“Well, you ain’t doin’ it,” Laura replies. “Makes a difference.” She moves a piece of hair out of his face as she looks down at him. 

“Lulu, I got somethin’!” Johnny yells, tugging on his fishing pole as something pulls back. 

“Hang on, ‘m comin’,” she says with a smile, handing her pole to Louis. “Don’t let go,” she tells him. Then she moves over to Johnny, telling him hand her the pole. 

“Get ready ta catch it,” she says. Then she tugs on the pole, pulling the fish out of the water. Johnny jumps, grabbing ahold of it’s slippery body before it slides out of his hands, then lands on the ground, flopping around.

“Grab it by th’ gills, silly. Like yer brother showed ya,” Laura says with a fond smile. “Gotta get th’ hook out.”

The small boy picks up the fish, not seeming to notice how slimy and wet it is, and holds it up for Laura, who sticks her fingers into it’s mouth, feeling around until she pulls the hook out. 

“That’s a big’n,” she tells Johnny. “Ya wanna put it back, ‘r ya want me to?”

“You can,” he answers, “don’t think Ma’d want me ta get wet.”

Laur sit down, pulling her boots and socks off and rolling up her jeans before taking ahold of the fish and wading out into the water. She submerges it, then lets go, watching as it swims away. 

“Laura, why aren’t I catching anything?” Louis asks. 

Laura shrugs as she stands in the water. 

“I dunno. Maybe it’s you.”

“Lulu!” Hanna calls from up in the tree, “there’s a big fish right by yer foot!”

Laura looks down, then slowly moves, gradually bending over until she’s sinking her hands into the water. 

A few seconds later, she pulls the fish up, holding it in her hands, her eyes wide as the fish flops around. 

“It  _is_  pretty big, ain’t it?” 

She looks over at Louis, who isn’t paying attention, then grins. She tosses the fish over at him, and it lands in the water with a splash, some of the water flying up to hit him in the face. It startles the lad, and he nearly drops the fishing pole. 

“Hey!” he protests, glaring at Laura. It doesn’t take long, however, before his glare fades to a grin, and soon both of them are laughing. Louis swings his hand through the water, splashing Laura. 

“Hey!” she says. Then she kicks some water at him, and before long, they’re having a splashing fight, making the rest of us laugh, especially when Louis hands the pole to Johnny and jumps in after Laura after she got his hair wet. 

He literally jumps on top of her, and they both fall into the water, Laura on the bottom, her whole body going under the surface. 

Louis curses, then pulls her back up. She scrunches up her nose, blinking the water out of her eyes as she sits up. 

“Are you alright?” Louis asks worriedly. Laura crooks her finger, beckoning him closer. 

He moves so he’s sitting right in front of her. “What?”

Laura smiles, then spits out a mouthful of water onto his face, laughing afterward. 

“Lulu!” Johnny says. “Yer scarin’ th’ fish!” 

“We prolly oughta get back,” Laura replies as she stands, helping a sputtering Louis to his feet. “Yer folks’ll be gettin’ here soon.”


	31. Chapter 31

Laura’s Point of View

Mondays are always the worst. I really don’t like them. The weekend is always nice, I can sleep in almost as late as I want, and stay up as late as I want. But Mondays always kill the vibe, with the waking up early and then having to go back to work. But I guess it is what it is.

This particular Monday, we’re baling hay again. But since we can’t spend all day on it, we've got a couple tractors going, so we can get done sooner. 

It's kind of funny, watching the guys as I show them how the tractors drive. Louis is probably the funniest, with the weird faces he makes. It’s not that hard, it’s just different from a car. It took me a while to remember what all the different levers and knobs did, but once I got it, it was easy.

“No, thiss’n,” I tell him after he pushes the wrong lever again. I move his hand to the right lever, which is on the opposite side of the seat from the one he just grabbed. “Down and left.” 

He furrows his eyebrows, moving the lever in the direction I told him. “Now let off th’ clutch. Slowly.” 

“Why slowly?” he asks, moving his foot up off of the pedal a bit too fast. The tractor jerks forward, yanking the wagon along behind it. 

“That’s why,” I say, grinning a little as he swears, pushing the pedal back down quickly. “Yer a’right, try ‘er again. Slower this time.”

He scowls in concentration, his foot barely moving as he releases the pedal. This time the tractor smoothly surges forward, the baler and wagon following. 

I tell him where to turn, and after he’s made a few passes, I hop off of the tractor, going over to the other tractor and starting it up.

We get the job done pretty fast, finishing just a few hours after we return from lunch. After the wagons are parked by the barn, and all the equipment is put away, we head back to the bunkhouse. 

“So there’s a banquet at th’ high school tanight,” I tell the guys as we slide off our boots. “It’s gonna be a couple hours o’ people readin’ names, but there’s free food iff’n ya’ll wanna go.”

“Sounds fun,” seems to be the consensus from all five of them, and after telling them that we’ll be leaving at four, I head up to my room to clean up and get dressed. 

Louis’ Point of View

I hear Laura coming back down the stairs before I see her. The steady click, click, click of her shoes on the hardwood is hard to miss. I turn to look for her, and physically have to hold my jaw up to keep it from falling open. That’s certainly different. 

She’s wearing a white, long sleeve button up shirt, tucked into a black skirt that hugs her hips. Her legs are covered in dark pantyhose, and she’s wearing a pair of black heels. In her hand she carries a blue jacket, and a small, blue scarf looking thing. It all looks tight, but not too tight. Just right. 

“Wow,” I hear one of the lads mutter. Laura looks up from pulling the band from her hair, a small smile on her face. 

“Do I look a’right?” she asks. 

I nod without hesitating. She looks amazing. She walks over to the couch, laying the jacket over the armrest, and setting the scarf on top of it. Then her hands go back to her hair, and she pulls the band out, letting it fall loosely around her shoulders. 

Then she turns around, and I see a dark ring on her back, in between her shoulder blades, that shows through her shirt. 

“Laura, is that a tattoo?” Liam asks. 

“Is what a tattoo?” she asks, trying to hook the scarf around her neck while keeping it tucked under the collar of her shirt.

“That on your back,” I say, poking the spot where I can see the ink. 

“Oh, that. Yeah,” she replies. 

“What is it?” Harry questions. 

“A circle with a couple arrows in it,” she says, walking over to the door to grab her bag before walking back. 

“What’s it mean?” I ask. 

“It’s ‘n old indian symbol fer protection. Figgered it fit, cause I need it. Get a bit reckless sometimes,” she answers with a grin. 

I won’t argue that. There are times when she scares even me with how wild she can get.

“Well, we oughta get goin’,” she says, putting the blue jacket on and sliding her wallet and keys into the pockets, along with her phone.

“Isn’t it a little hot to be wearing a jacket?” Niall asks as we begin to walk outside and down the front steps.

“Part o’ th’ job,” she replies. “Officers gotta wear OD at these things.”

“OD? What’s that?” I ask. 

“Official Dress. This,” Laura answers, motioning to what she’s wearing. “Wear it fer competitions, ceremonies, an’ banquets. Fancy stuff.”

We reach Laura’s truck, but she doesn’t stop and get in. Instead, she walks around to the other truck that’s parked by it, where Mr. Johnson is sitting in the driver’s seat.

“Daddy’s comin’ too, ‘case you was wonderin’,” Laura says as she opens the door to the backseat before climbing in. 

“Y’got everythin’ ya need?” he asks as the rest of us pile in, four in the back and two up in the front with Mr. Johnson. I sit in the back by Laura, sandwiched between her and Liam. 

“Yessir,” Laura replies as he starts the truck. 

After about an hour and forty five-ish minutes of driving, we get to what Laura says is the high school. The parking lot is mostly empty, so we get a good spot that’s close to the door. Mr. Johnson parks the truck, and we all walk into the building. 

“Laura, there you are!” a voice says. Soon Ann comes clicking down the hall, pulling Laura into a hug. 

They’re both dressed exactly the same, minus the different type of shoes. While Laura’s are plain black heels, Ann’s have small ribbons around the toes. 

“Is everythin’ ready?” Laura asks as the two start to walk down the hall, Ann telling Laura what still has to be done. The rest of us follow them into a large room - it must be the gymnasium or something - decorated with blue and gold streamers and balloons. 

At least fifty or so tables fill the floor, all with chairs seated around them. One large row of tables circles the back of the room, a few dishes of food already placed along the length of it. 

Mr. Johnson sits down at a table near the front of the room, by the large stage that’s been set up, and the lads and I sit with him. Ann and Laura are walking around the large room, making sure everything is in it’s place. Rob, Ashley, and a couple other people dressed similarly to them are standing by the podium in the center of the stage, talking and looking at a big binder full of papers. 

“Mister President!” Laura calls. Rob looks up, then walks over, leaving Ashley with a pout on her face as she tries to keep explaining what he was, but it doesn’t look like she does a good job. 

Rob walks over to where Ann and Laura are, and they talk for a few seconds before Laura nods, and then she asks him something. After he answers, a small frown finds its way onto her face. Obviously she’s disappointed with his answer. She says something else, then walks over to where we’re sitting. 

“Daddy, can I have th’ keys please? We need s'more ice,” she asks. 

“Sure darlin’,” he answers, digging into his pocket and pulling out the keys to his truck. “Be careful.”

“Yessir,” she answers. Then she turns to the lads and I. “Anyone wanna come with?” she asks, twirling the keyring around her finger. 

“I’ll go,” I say, pushing my chair back. Going somewhere with Laura sounds more fun than sitting and waiting for this thing to start. She smiles at me, then we walk out the door.

“So,” I start, not knowing how to ask what I want to ask. 

“What?” she asks, leaning over to nudge me with her shoulder. I’ve never really noticed it before, but with heels on, Laura’s the same height as me. Normally she’s only a couple inches shorter. 

“Do you like Rob?” I ask as we walk outside.

She smiles, shaking her head. “ ‘S it that obvious?”

“Just a little,” I say with a smile. It is pretty obvious. She glances over at him about every five to ten seconds, and whenever he talks she’s always listening intently. Granted he does have a nice voice. 

“Damn it,” she laughs as she unlocks the truck. I open the passenger door, then climb in. Laura looks both ways, making sure no one else is out there, then hikes her skirt up her thighs and climbs into the driver’s seat. 

“Not very ladylike,” I tease.

“In case ya hadn’t noticed,” she says as she starts the truck, “I ain’t very ladylike most ‘o th’ time.” 

“So how far is it to wherever we’re going?” I ask. 

“ ‘Bout five minutes,” she replies. “Ain’t too far.”

We're quiet for a minute, Laura tapping her thumb on the steering wheel. She keeps looking around and sighing - well, more like huffing - loudly.

"Are you alright?" I ask.

"Yeah, I s'pose. Jus' frustrated. Stuff ain't ready, an' th' banquet starts in less'n an hour." 

"Well, what's not ready?"

"Well, there ain't 'nuff ice, th' state officers ain't there yet, an' Ashley won't leave Rob 'lone long 'nuff ta let 'im get nothin' done."

“Does that bother you?” I ask, a small smirk on my face. It obviously does, I’m just asking to see if she’ll admit it. 

“Well, yeah. Iff’n ‘e can’t get nothin’ done, it puts th’ rest o’ us behind, an' that ain’t good. Plus it makes ‘im grumpy, an’ that ain’t fun.”

Before long, we pull up in front of the party store on the other side of town, and buy a few large bags of ice. 

When we bring the bags inside, there are about a hundred more people in the large room, filling the tables and chairs.

Laura and I set the bags on the tarp covering the floor behind the food table, and after she thanks me, I go back to sit with the lads and Mr. Johnson.

Around six thirty, all of the officers gather around the podium, where Rob says a few words, then they all disperse, going off to different places in the large room.

After all of them are seated in their respective chairs, Rob taps the gavel on the podium three times. 

“The banquet hall will come to order!” he says loudly. “We are now holding a meeting of the Region Six FFA Chapter. Madame Vice President!”

Ann, who is seated on the opposite side of the room, stands up.

“Are all officers at their stations?” Rob asks. 

“I shall call the roll of officers, determine if they are at their stations, and report back to you, Mister President,” she says. Then she turns to the door. “The Sentinel.”

“Stationed by the door,” a tall boy says as he stands to his feet. Hey, that’s the guy Laura got in a fight with at the Dillon’s party. 

“Your duties there?” Ann asks. 

“Through this door pass many friends of the FFA. It is my duty to see that the door is open to our friends at all times and that they are welcome. I care for the meeting room and paraphernalia. I strive to keep the room comfortable and assist the President in maintaining order,” the boy answers.

“The Reporter,” Ann calls next, turning to a spot farther down the wall. 

Laura stands, holding her head high. 

“The Reporter is stationed by th” flag,” she says with a proud smile. 

“Why by the flag?” Ann asks. 

“As th’ flag covers th’ United States of America, so I strive to inform th’ people, in order that every man, woman, an’ child should know that th’ FFA is a national organization that reaches from th’ state of Alaska to Puerto Rico, an' from th’ state of Maine to Hawaii,” Laura says smoothly.

“The Treasurer,” Ann says, turning to the next person along the wall. 

“Stationed at the emblem of Washington,” the blonde girl says as she stands. 

“Your duties there?” Ann asks. 

“I keep a record of receipts and disbursements, just as Washington kept his farm accounts - carefully and accurately. I encourage thrift among the members and strive to build up our financial standings through savings and investments. George Washington was better able to serve his country because he was financially independent,” the girl says, her voice a little shaky. 

“The Secretary,” Ann calls. 

Ashley stands from her spot next to Rob. 

“Stationed by the ear of corn,” she says.

“Your duties there?” Ann asks. 

“I keep an accurate record of all meetings and correspond with other secretaries wherever corn is grown and FFA members meet,” Ashley says. 

“The advisor,” Ann says.

“Here by the owl,” a man says as he stands from his seat in the middle of the room. 

“Why by the owl?” Ann asks. 

“The owl is a symbol of knowledge and wisdom. Being older than the rest of you, I am asked to advise you from time to time as the need arises. I hope that my advice will always be based on true knowledge and ripened with wisdom,” he answers. “Madame Vice President, why do you keep a plow at your station?” 

“The plow is a symbol of labor and tillage of the soil. Without labor, neither knowledge nor wisdom can accomplish much. My duties require me to assist at all times in directing the work of our organization. I preside over meetings in the absence of our President, whose place is beneath the rising sun,” Ann answers.

“Why is the President so stationed?” the man asks. 

“The rising sun is a token of a new era in agriculture. If we will follow the leadership of our President, we shall be led out of the darkness of selfishness, and into the glorious sunlight of brotherhood and cooperation,” Ann answers. Then she turns back to Rob. “Mister President, all officers are at their stations.”

“Thank you, Madame Vice President,” Rob says. He taps the gavel once, and all the officers sit down. “The Secretary will call the roll of members.”

Ashley stands, looking down at a piece of paper. 

“Mister President, I am pleased to announce that at this, the forty third Region Six FFA Banquet, there are one hundred and seventy seven members and guests present, Mister President,” Ashley says. 

“Thank you,” Rob says as she sits back down. He turns to address the whole room. “FFA members, why are we here?” 

The gavel taps three times, and suddenly a sea of blue jackets stands, all of them speaking in unison.

“To practice brotherhood, honor agricultural duties and responsibilities, and develop those qualities of leadership which an FFA member should posses.” 

The gavel taps again, and everyone sits back down. 

“May we accomplish our purpose,” Rob says. “I now declare this meeting of the Region Six FFA Chapter duly opened for the transaction of business, or attention to any matters which may properly be presented.”

Rob looks down at the paper in front of him, then back up at everyone. 

“We’re going to eat first, then hand out the awards. Officers and their families will go through the line first, followed by everyone else,” he says.

Then he walks away, over to a table where I assume his family is sitting. The other officers do the same, walking over to their families before they all go to the beginning of the line. 

“C’mon, let’s go eat,” Laura says as she walks up to where we’re sitting.

“But we aren’t your family,” Liam protests. 

“Y’are tanight,” she says. “C’mon, all th’ good food’ll be gone iff’n ya wait.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice,” Niall says, standing from his chair and pulling Zayn up with him.

Laura and her father walk in front of us as we make our way over to the long table overflowing with food, filling our plates. 

When we sit back down, Laura sits with us, and tells us what’s going to happen, and who certain people are. 

“That there, he’s th’ Region Two State Vice President. Fancy stuff. Real important,” she says, nodding toward a tall blonde in the food line. “An th’ girl next to ‘im, she’s th’ State Secretary.”

She talks about the state officers with a tone of reverence and awe, as if they're renowned people. To me they seem like everyone else. Just people wearing blue jackets with their names embroidered on them. 

“What’s the difference between region and state officers or whatever you call them?” Liam asks. 

“State officers ’re fer th’ whole state. Regional officers ‘re jus’ in one region.”

“Laura, we’re up in 'bout three minutes,” Ann says as she walks up, sitting down by Niall.

“What do you have to do?” I ask. 

“Read names, hand out pins, shake people’s hands,” Laura says. Then she leans closer. “Ashley don’t do none o’ it. She just stands there while th’ rest o’ us do th’ work.” Laura rolls her eyes as Ann makes a noise of agreement. 

“We prolly oughta go,” Laura says. 

“Yeah, gotta make sure Ash doesn’t lock herself in the bathroom again,” Ann giggles. 

Then they’re standing and walking away, taking their plates with them to the trash can.

“Niall, you’re staring,” I say quietly. The blonde lad quickly turns around in his chair, facing the rest of us once again. 

“No I’m not,” he protests halfheartedly. 

Two hours, thirty seven minutes, and seventy eight names later, we’re walking back out to the truck to go back to the ranch. 

“Ugh, my feet are killing me,” I hear Ashley complain as she walks on the other side of Laura. “Somebody carry me.”

Just like Laura said, Ashley didn't really do anything the entire night besides sit by Rob and smile at the people as they walked past her. Laura and Ann seemed to do most of the work, both of them switching who read the names of the award recipients and who gave them their pins and awards and shook their hands. 

“Maybe you should get shoes that fit,” Laura mutters under her breath. 

“What?” Ashley asks, not having heard what Laura said. 

“Maybe you oughta ask yer brother ta help ya,” Laura says, a bit louder than before. 

“That ain’t no fun,” Ashley whines. “Rob, will you help me? My feet hurt.”

The tall guy looks a bit irritated at the question, but offers his arm nonetheless, helping Ashley walk over to her car by taking some of the pressure off of her feet. 

Laura rolls her eyes again, and climbs into the ranch truck. 

“Why he’s nice ta her, I ain’t never gonna understand.” 


	32. Chapter 32

Laura’s Point of View

The next day, after dropping a wagon full of hay at the stockyards, the guys and I are having a sort of lazy day in the bunkhouse. 

Well, two of us are.

Louis and I are on the couch, watching movies, while the other guys are up in their rooms, doing something. I'm not sure what. Liam said something about a twitcam, and I think Harry's calling his mother or something. 

At the moment, we’re watching The Amazing Spiderman. 

I’m sitting sideways on the couch, my legs slung over Louis’. 

“Laura?” he asks. 

“Hmm?” I hum, not looking away from the screen.

“Could you maybe put your legs away?”

“What?” I turn to look at him, confused. 

“Could you put your legs away? They’re distracting me,” he repeats. I raise an eyebrow. 

“Distracting?” That’s the first time I’ve heard something like that. I suppose my shorts do look pretty short. But that’s not my fault, my legs are just really long. 

“Yes, distracting.”

“Well, get used to it. ’S too hot fer actual pants,” I sass. It’s gotta be at least ninety seven or something outside, and the bunkhouse doesn’t have air conditioning. 

“Please?” he whines, poking my knee.

“I’ll put pants on iff’n you put sleeves on,” I reply. It’s not that he doesn’t have a shirt on, but the shirt he has on doesn’t have sleeves, and his arms are pretty distracting. All that ink swirling around his skin, it looks better than I thought it would.

“What?” he asks, finally turning to look at me.  

“Put some sleeves on. Yer arms’re distracting.”

“No they aren’t. They’re just arms,” he protests. 

“Well these’re jus’ legs,” I point out. 

“But they’re distracting.’

“So ‘re yer arms.”

He frowns, staring at me as if that will change my mind. I stare right back, a small smirk on my face. 

After a second, the corner of his mouth quirks up into a small grin, and he raises an eyebrow. I tilt my head to one side, curious.

He starts to lean over, slowly but surely getting closer. I raise an eyebrow, wondering what he’s doing. 

Suddenly his arm shoots out, reaching past me and snatching my phone off of the armrest of the couch, taking it with him as he sits back. 

“Hey,” I protest, reaching for my phone. He holds it out of my reach, pushing buttons in an attempt to unlock it. “What’re ya doin’?”

“What the heck is this thing?” he asks, glaring at my phone. I look over, trying to figure out why he’s grumpy looking. 

“A lock screen,” I say. 

“I know that, how do I get in?” he says flippantly. 

“Ya put th’ numbers in,” I tell him with a smile.

“What numbers?” he asks, looking over at me.  

“I ain’t tellin’ you.”

“Please?”

“Nope.”

“Please?” he asks, sticking out his bottom lip. 

“No,” I reply, my grin getting wider. 

“Come on Laura…” he pouts, leaning back over until he’s right in front of my face. 

“Nooo…” I shake my head. 

“Laura…” He sets his head on my shoulder, leaning into me.

“What’re ya doin’?” I ask with a laugh.

“Your hair smells nice,” he mumbles.

“Thanks?” 

Then his fingers are digging into my sides, and I nearly fall off the couch trying to get away from his tickling hands. 

“Hey!” I shriek, trying to whack his hands away, my arms and legs flailing everywhere. 

“Tell me!” he laughs.  

“No!” 

“Yes!”

“No!”

He moves his hands faster, and I can’t talk anymore, I’m laughing so hard. Somehow I’ve squirmed halfway off of the couch, and when my leg kicks again, it hits Louis just right, and we both fall onto the floor with a thud.

"Stop it!" I laugh, trying to get him off of me. 

"Never!" he says. 

"Louis!" I practically squeal. 

One of my legs hits his, knocking it out from underneath him, and he falls on top of me.

"Oof! Hey, that's not nice!" I groan.

"Well, you're not nice," he argues, not moving from where he's squashing me.

" 'M hurt Louis. That done hurt," I reply with a pout.

He looks down at me. 

"Well then I apologize. Twas not my intention to hurt you," he says. 

"Well lookit you, apologizin' like 'n adult," I coo, making him grin. 

"Thank you?" he says with a chuckle.

"Yer welcome," I reply with a grin. "Ya wanna get offa me now?"

"Nah, I'm pretty comfy right here." He moves so he's leaning on his elbows, sort of holding himself up.

"Well I ain't. Yer leg's squishing mine."

"Well too bad. I'm comfy."

I try to shove him off, but get nowhere.

“Weenie,” I mutter.

“What? Did you just call me a weenie?” he asks amusedly.

“Yes, I did,” I say, mentally crossing my arms. “Whatcha gonna do ‘bout it?”

He narrows his eyes at me, then his hands are moving again, tickling my sides, and soon I’m laughing so hard that tears are running down my cheeks.

“Stop - stop it!” I snort. “Yer gonna make - make me pee!”

“Ew!” he says, jumping off of me. 

I lay there trying to catch my breath, my hands on my stomach, while Louis climbs back onto the couch, laying on his side while he looks down at me curiously. 

“What?” I ask. 

“Nothing,” he replies, shaking his head. “Just trying to figure you out.”

“Why?”

He shrugs. “I dunno. You’re confusing, I guess.”

“Me? Confusin’?” I ask. “How?”

“You just are,” he says. “You don’t say a whole lot about yourself.”

“Yer point?”

“I dunno. I feel like I barely know you?” Well I barely know you. What’s your point?

“You wanna know me?” I’m not sure I want you to know me. I’m gonna get attached to you, and it’s gonna be that much harder for me when you leave. Because you’re gonna leave. And it’ll come too soon, when I’m not ready for it.

“Sort of.” He pauses for a moment. “Where are you from?”

Alright, easy enough question. 

“Here.”

“Like, right here?” he asks.

“Yeah. Ain’t never lived nowhere else.”

“Really?” I nod. “Okay, favorite sport?” he tries.

“Volleyball, I s’pose. It’s th’ only sport I really know,” I tell him, swinging my legs up onto the couch. 

“How are you at it?” he asks. 

“ ‘M a’right. I ain’t th’ best, I ain’t th’ worst. Coach likes me, that must count fer somethin’.”

“Probably,” he agrees. “Which side of your family are the grandparents that were here from?”

“Mama’s.” Please don’t ask about her… it won’t end well. 

“Oh. Do they come around often?”

“Once ‘n awhile. Usually come fer supper. Nani makes good tortillas when she comes.”

“What are they like?” Alright, we’re staying with easy stuff. that’s good, I suppose.

I start in on how she makes them, the specific way she kneads the dough, not putting too much flour down, just enough to keep it from sticking, but not enough to make it dry. 

That turns into a conversation about favorite desserts, then holiday stuff, then family. 

“So wait,” I say, stopping Lous mid-sentence, “you got how many sisters?”

“Four,” he repeats, rolling his eyes. “And they’re all younger than me.”

“That’s insane,” I laugh. 

“Do you have any siblings?” he asks. 

“I woulda had a brother,” I answer. “Didn’t make it.”

He frowns a little. “I’m sorry,” he says quietly.

I wave him off. “ ‘T’s a’right.”

He’s quiet for a second, then he asks, “older or younger than you?”

“Older. ‘Bout two years older, th’ way Uncle Jack told it.” 

“What was his name?”

“Was gonna be Eugene, after Daddy. Eugene Robert Johnson, iff’n I ‘member right.”

“Do you talk to your uncle a lot?”

“Ish,” I answer. “ ‘E’s th’ one tells me th’ most. Says I’ll find out anyway, might ‘s well be from him.”

“What do you find out?” Louis asks, propping his head up on his arm, the movie long forgotten.

“Stuff. Sometimes it’s ‘bout Mama, sometimes other stuff.” 

“What does he tell you?”

I smile. 

“Tells me I look just like ‘er. Spittin’ image, ‘e says.”

“Was she as stubborn as you?” he asks. 

I look up at him, fully intending to give him a sarcastic glare, and our eyes meet. 

It’s as if they lock onto each other, and I can’t look away, his eyes have me mesmerized.

I blink, but I can’t seem to tear my eyes away from his. I never noticed how blue they were until now. Bright blue, with small flecks of silver scattered around them. He doesn't seem to be trying to look away from me either.

I really can’t explain what I’m feeling right now. It’s a weird, tingly feeling, like an adrenaline rush, but different.

I find myself leaning up, and see him moving down toward me.

His eyes flick down from my eyes to my mouth, then back up, making my stomach jump. I don’t know what this is right now, but I’m not stopping it. I’m not sure I want to.

Only a couple inches separate us, and I don’t know what I’m doing, but my eyes are starting to close as he tilts his head to one side.  

The tingly feeling gets stronger, but in my nose. Suddenly it's too much, and...

"Achoo!" I sneeze, turning my head to the side, breaking myself out of whatever kind of daze that was.

"Wow," I hear Louis say from above me.

"Sorry," I apologize, looking back up at him.

He clears his throat. “Yeah," he replies, looking anywhere except at me, his cheeks turning a faint shade of pink, one that I'm pretty sure matches mine.

Well this sure is awkward. Was he really going to… kiss me? If I hadn’t sneezed, would it have happened? 

Luckily, my phone goes off, saving me from more awkwardness. I grab it off of the couch, and read Ann’s text. 

‘ **Hey, u comin 2nite?** ’ 

Then I check the time. 

“Oh shit, I gotta go!” I scramble up, nearly knocking over Louis. I grab the remote and turn the TV off, then toss it back onto the couch.

“Where? Why?” he asks, following me as I walk past the couch and into the kitchen, grabbing a water bottle from the fridge and setting it on the counter. 

“Meeting. Forgot ‘bout it till now. Starts in fifteen minutes,” I say quickly. 

“Oh. Can... can I come?” he asks, making me stop and turn to face him.

“You wanna come ta a fair board meetin’?” He nods. “They’re th’ most boring things ever. Ya sure?” 

"Yeah. How bad can it be?” I smirk, knowing how bad they can get. 

“Alright. Go get in th’ truck, I’ll be there inna minute.” 

He nods again, and I walk toward my room to grab my bag with my stuff in it, while he walks out to the truck.

I leave a note for the others on the fridge, letting them know that I took Louis with me, and what time we should be back. Then I grab my bag and run out to the truck, jumping in and throwing my bag over into the passenger seat. 

“Ooof! Hey!” 

“Sorry, not used ta havin’ people come with me ta these,” I apologise as I start the truck. “You can set it on th’ floor iff’n ya don’t wanna hang onto it.”

I throw the truck into gear, and we speed off down the driveway. 

“You do got a seatbelt on, right?” I ask him.

“Yeah. But you don’t,” he answers.

“Shit. Knew I fergot somethin’.” I take my hand off the shifter and quickly strap myself in. No sense in me dying when I got a meeting to go to.

“Text Ann, tell ‘er I’m gonna be a lot late, please.”

“Ok. Which pocket?” He knows that I won’t just hand him my phone, cause I have to use both hands to drive. 

“Back right,” I say as I turn onto the main road. I’m glad that they repaved this part, that means I can drive faster on it. 

I feel his hand in my pocket for a second, and then my phone is pulled out. 

“It’s still locked.”

“Eight-six-seven-five-three-oh-niiine,” I sing, telling him the code to unlock my phone. 

After a few seconds, he sets my phone on the dashboard, done with the text.

“Can I turn on the radio?”

“Iff’n ya want. ‘S gonna be loud.”

Louis' point of view

Thankfully she doesn't mention our almost-kiss, because I don't want it to be awkward between us like it was. 

I’m not sure what got into me. Or why I was going in for the kiss like that. I mean, yeah, she’s pretty, but I don’t like her like that. We’re friends. I guess we were both just caught up in the moment. Got carried away. Something like that. 

After she parks the truck, we climb out and walk across the parking lot, toward a large brick building. 

“Thought you said you was gonna be on time,” a voice calls from beside Laura. I look over and see Rob walking from his truck, going the same way we are. 

“Thought you was too,” she says with a smile. “You here fer th’ Fair Board?”

He shakes his head. “Naw. Gotta pick up my sister.”

“Oh,” Laura says, a tinge of disappointment in her tone. She quickly shakes it off though, when we reach the door and have to part ways from Rob, saying a ‘see you later.’

We walk over to the stairs, while Rob turns down the hallway. 

“So what happens at these?” I ask, curious. 

“Lotta yellin’,” Laura replies, beginning to climb the stairs. 

I follow her, up and up and up, until we reach the fourth floor, and she turns down another hallway. 

There’s one door that’s halfway open at the end of the hallway, and I can already hear raised voices coming from inside. 

“Here we go,” she says as we walk in. 

Niall’s Point of View

 **‘So whatcha doin?’**  I type, sending the text to Ann.

I look around my room while I wait for her reply, just now noticing how at home I feel here. It’s nice and cozy, but not too small. This Southern Hospitality thing really must be true. 

My phone buzzes from it’s spot by my leg on the bed, and I pick it up, reading what Ann’s sent. 

‘ **In a meeting. Getting bored :/** ’

‘ **Are you gonna get in trouble?** ’ I send back. Her reply is almost instant.

‘ **Nah. Nobody can see. :) Wat r you doin?** ’

**‘Nothin much. Just sittin on my bed.’**

We talk for a few minutes about her horse, and how he threw a shoe or something the other day, until she asks,

‘ **Wat r we?** ’

The question stumps me for a second, not quite knowing the answer myself. I know I like her. And I’m pretty sure she likes me. But a label? I don’t really know. it would be cool to be boyfriend/girlfriend, but if she doesn’t want to be, I’m alright with that. 

‘ **Wat do u wanna b?** ’ I send back, trying to figure out if she’s thinking the same thing.

‘ **I was hoping you’d just tell me** ,’ is what I get back. 

Well, time for honesty. Here goes nothing.

Laura’s Point of View

I walk out the door after the two hour long meeting, trying desperately to keep my anger from showing. These people have no concept of when to stop pushing. They want to have the entire fair just laid out for them, and do no work in return for it. I don’t understand how people can live like that. 

These meetings usually make me pretty angry, but this one in particular is just digging the spurs farther. 

Once we’re in the truck, I’m barely holding it in.

“So, what exactly was that?” Louis asks.

“That,” I tell him, “was th’ biggest club in th’ county tryin’ ta run things without doin’ none o’ th’ work.”

“Do those usually go like that?” he asks. I look over at him. He looks sort of shell shocked, and I don’t blame him. It was literally like going to war when we walked in there. Right off the bat there was an issue that I spoke up for, but was quickly shot down. 

The people that happened to be in the majority (by some miracle, because they only show up for these meetings when they want something to pass, not any other time of the year) were proposing that the feeder calves, which aren’t even half the size of the big steers, be housed with the rest of the beef animals. 

I’m against it because not only is it a safety thing, but it looks disorganized when there are smaller calves in with the bigger animals. But not everyone sees it that way. They see it as every club should have their animals together, regardless of how big they are. I suggested having the animals still together by club, but separated by size, and they shot that down right away. They didn’t want to have to make any more new gates for that. It costs too much money. 

“Not quite. Us’ly a ‘lil calmer. Not by much though,” I reply. “You hungry?

“A little.”

“Good,” I say, turning into the Wendy’s drive through, “Now I won’t be th’ only one eatin’.”

Louis’ Point of View

“Hey! That’s my finger!” I exclaim, retracting my hand. 

“Not my fault, it’s gettin’ dark and I can’t see,” Laura laughs. “Don’t put it so close ta my face.”

We’re about halfway back to the ranch, according to Laura, and since she’s driving, I’m holding her food out to her so she can eat. But it isn’t working too well without the lights of the town to keep her from biting my fingers. 

“Fry please,” she says. I pull a couple from the paper container, holding them out for her. She turns her head for a second, biting into them before pulling them from my hand when she looks back at the road. 

“I jus’ don’t get why they don’t see it the way it is,” she mutters. She’s also been sort of venting to me about what went on in the meeting. 

I will say one thing, it was insane. So many people were there, most of them didn’t have a clue what was going on until it got to the part they were there for, even I could tell that. Then all they did was try to pass the motion as fast as they could, without answering any questions or listening to anything that anyone else had to say. Not very nice. 

They were especially mean to Laura. From what I gathered, her club is one of the smaller ones in the county, so they don’t get much say in what goes on. The people from the larger clubs think that Laura has an unfair advantage, being the leader of a smaller club, because she can work one on one with the kids and get things done faster. They think that she should be able to do more than she does. 

I also gather that she does a lot. Like, a literal shit ton of stuff. She packs the ribbons for all twelve shows, labels the trophies, takes them to the people who run the shows, opens and closes the gates to the fairgrounds every morning during the fair, helps park the cars, runs one of the shows, pretty much handles every question that gets asked, and helps eleven kids with their projects. And these people want to give her even more to do. 

“It’s like they wanna jus’ sit there an’ watch everyone else do th’ work, but they want all th’ credit fer it,” she continues. As she keeps talking, her smooth voice filling the quiet cab of the truck, my mind drifts back to what happened just before we left. 

Ann had come skipping - yes, literally skipping - up to Laura, a huge smile on her face. 

“Guess who’s got a boyfriend?” she’d asked. 

“Not me,” Laura had replied, making Ann laugh.

“No seriously,” she’d said. 

“You do?” Laura asked with a hint of a smile. 

“Yes!” Ann squealed.  

“Really? Who is it?” Laura asked as she slung her bag over her shoulder. 

“Niall. That blonde guy who works for you,” Ann said. 

They’d walked out of the room and down the hall talking about guys, mostly Niall, and if Laura hadn’t kept looking back, I would have thought she’d forgotten about me. 

But she kept looking back, making sure I was still there. She doesn’t seem to forget much. 

Except almost kissing me. She seems to have forgotten that. So I intend to do the same. It’s too confusing to try and think about. 


	33. Chapter 33

Liam's Point of View

"A'right, you got everythin' yer gonna need?" Laura asks. "We're stayin' overnight out there."

"I think so," I say, looking over everything I have laid out on my bed. An extra pair of jeans, another shirt, two pairs of socks, a sleeping bag, blanket, and a few water bottles.

Laura, Louis, Kyle, and I are going to ride out to what Laura calls 'the halfway cabin' and I guess we're going to fix it up to use later when we ride out again to get all the cattle that are at the far north end of the ranch and bring them back in for the fall.

"You gonna wear th' same underwear fer two days?" she asks. I feel my face heat up, even though it's an innocent question.

"I knew I forgot something," I mutter.

She slaps me on the shoulder. "Ya done pretty good, Liam. Jus' 'nuff ta make it, but not too much ta carry," she says with a smile. "I'll go see how Louis' doin'."

Then she walks out of the room, leaving me with my thoughts. She had told the lads and I yesterday that we could decide among ourselves who would go, and walked out of the room, leaving us to decide by ourselves.

Right away we had chosen Louis, who seems to be getting along with Laura the best at the moment. He hadn't complained, and almost seemed eager to go.

Picking the other person who would be going was a bit of a challenge. In the end, we had a game of rock, paper, scissors, the winner being me. So I got to go along.

Harry, Zayn, and Niall are going to stay here and do the chores, feed the animals, and keep everything running. I'd like to think that we've gotten the swing of how things are run here, so they should do alright.

Feed the horses around eight every morning, make sure the cattle have enough grass left to eat, move them if they don't, keep everything in working order, feed the horses around seven each night. It's wasn't too hard once I got the routine down.

But this is different. We're going to be spending the day riding - I've done that before - but we won't be back in the bunkhouse when we go to sleep. There will be roof over our heads, but it won't be the one I've grown used to.

One I've got everything packed, I take my small bundle downstairs, where the rest of the lads are waiting to say goodbye. Louis has a bundle like mine resting at his feet.

Laura's got the horses standing outside, one of the ponies standing with them, loaded up with the supplies we'll need to make any repairs that have to be done.

"Wrap those up in these an' tie 'em on behind yer saddles," Laura tells Louis and I, motioning to the bundles we're carrying. She tosses us a pair of large yellow coats, both of them long enough to reach the ground if we put them on.

"What are these?" Louis asks.

"Slicker. Keeps th' rain offa ya. Iff'n we get any, that is," Laura replies, tying her own small bundle up onto her horse. Louis and I do the same, making sure that they won't fall off while we're riding.

Before long, Kyle pulls up in his truck, parking it next to Laura's, and walks over with his own bundle of things to take with him, his dog Lassie following along behind him.

"Mornin' Lulu," he says with a small smile.

"Mornin'," she replies. "Y'got everythin' ya need?"

"Yes ma'am," he replies, holding up his bundle. "Ya got my horse fer me?"

"Yessir, right over there."

3rd Person Point of View

When the group of four set off, the rest of the lads stand on the porch of the bunkhouse, watching until they can't see them anymore.

Once they've disappeared over the small ridge at the edge of the fence line, all three of the remaining guys go back into the bunkhouse to look at the list of things Laura left that they could do while the others were gone.

"We could go back on the roof, maybe fix some of the leaks on the stable," Niall suggests.

"But it's almost afternoon, it'll be really hot out," Harry point out. "How about we do that later, when the sun isn't shining right on us?"

"That's a good idea. And while we wait we can move the rest of the hay into the hayloft," Zayn says.

Meanwhile, the group of four riders and one dog have reached the first river crossing.

"It ain't too awful deep," Laura tells Louis. "Jus' let 'im pick 'is own way through it. Should be a'right."

Louis nods, a little unsure of how this river crossing on horseback thing works. He's seen Laura do it before, and he's crossed the creek at the edge of the cattle pasture before, but it wasn't this deep or wide. It's just a little creek.

Still, he lets Frodo follow Rebel into the water, trusting the white horse to keep him from falling.

The water comes nearly up to his knees, soaking through the bottoms of his jeans and tugging at his boots. It's a strange feeling, almost as if the water is trying to pull him from the saddle and into the current.

All of them make it across the water safely, though a little wetter than when they first started. They pause a little ways from the river bank, Laura and Kyle taking off their boots to dump the water out, Louis and Liam quickly following suit, emptying their boots onto the dry grass. Lassie shakes the water off of herself, then starts trotting around the horses' legs, looking up at the riders.

"See?" Laura asks Louis once they start riding again, "weren't that bad."

Behind the two, Kyle and Liam silently follow, Liam staying quiet because he's too busy enjoying the view of the open range to think of anything to say, and Kyle because he's thinking.

Thinking about Laura.

He doesn't like the way that the two people riding in front of him get along so well. It took a whole two months for Laura to open up like that around Kyle. What's so different about this foreigner? What does he have that Kyle doesn't? Besides that weird accent. Kyle still isn't used to that, no matter how many times he's heard them talking, it still sounds strange.

Call him crazy, but Kyle isn't too excited about the girl he likes getting close to another guy. Even if nothing comes of it, it's still time that she could have spent with Kyle instead of Louis.

Around noon, after they've just crossed another river, this one deeper than the last, the four riders break for lunch. Laura pulls out a few sandwiches from her saddlebags, tossing them to the guys as she sits down next to Louis. Almost immediately, the two start up a conversation.

"So why do you have a gun?" Louis asks, nodding toward the rifle attached to the girl's saddle.

"Jus' in case we need it," Laura replies. "Never know what's gonna be out here."

"Do you think there's going to be anything out here?" Louis asks.

Laura shakes her head. "It shouldn't be too bad. There ain't much where we're goin'," she answers. "Th' real problem is at th' far north end o' th' range. There's a pack o' coyotes out there."

"Are we going out there?" Liam asks.

"Not till August, when we round up all th' cattle that're out there," Laura says. "Why? Ya scared?"

Liam shakes his head stubbornly. "No, just curious."

The idea scares him more than he'd like to admit. Wild animals haven't been his favorite thing for a while now, and the thought of going on purpose to a place where they're living isn't something that thrills him.

"So how long are we going to keep riding?" Louis asks, trying to change the subject.

"I figure iff'n we ride all day we should get there 'round dark," Laura muses, completely unaware of Kyle's watchful eyes on her. "Then we put th' horses up an' sleep, then get ta work in th' mornin'."

"Where are we going to stay, exactly?" Liam asks.

"In a cabin. It ain't too awful big. Got a bed innit though."

"Just one bed?" Louis asks.

"You got a problem with sharin'?" Laura shoots back, grinning. Then she looks up at the sky, figuring out how much daylight they have left in the day.

She stands, shoving the last of her sandwich into her mouth.

"Better get goin'. Burnin' daylight."

When the four get to the small cabin, the moon is high in the sky, the night well set in.

"Hobble th' horses, then we can go ta bed," Laura says tiredly as she pulls her saddle from Rebel's back.

"There's not a pen for the horses?" Liam asks with a yawn. "How do we keep them from running away?"

Laura pulls a small length of rope from her saddlebags, tossing it to Liam. "Hobble 'em. Lets 'em walk 'round without goin' too far."

She pulls another rope out, then kneels down at Rebel's front hooves, looping the rope around one leg before tying a loop, doing the same with the other side, making sure there's enough rope in between so that the horse can walk comfortably. Kyle does the same with his horse, Stormy, then goes over to help Louis.

"Are you sure that's tied right?" Louis asks as he looks at the knot Kyle tied on his horse.

"Yeah," Kyle replies. "Ain't goin' nowhere."

After the horses are all given the option to drink from a bucket of water, all four riders take their bundles of things into the small cabin.

Once she digs the matches from her saddlebag, Laura lights an oil lantern that sits on the table along the wall of the tiny room, illuminating it.

It isn't much, around twenty by twenty feet, with a table on one side, a fireplace in the corner, and a large bed on the other side.

"Well, I'm goin' ta sleep," she says as she kicks off her boots, crawling into the bed. "I don't object ta sharin', jus' don't go doin' nothin' stupid." She curls up in the middle of the mattress, making herself as small as she can with her long legs, folds her arms under her head, and closes her eyes, waiting for sleep to come.

After a few minutes of struggling to get their boots off, the guys join her, falling onto the mattress. Kyle makes sure to move so that he's the closest to Laura, silently telling the other two to back off. Louis lays down on the other side of Laura, stretching out on his back. Liam finds a spot on the edge of the bed falling asleep instantly once his head hits the pillow.

For Kyle and Louis, sleep takes a bit longer to come.

For Louis, it's because he's thinking. Trying figure out the first thing he's going to do once he gets home. Maybe roll around in his bed, knock off some of the pillows, then go to sleep. Or maybe slide down the stairs on the cupboard door that always falls off. He's never bothered to fix it, thinking that it might come in handy sometime.

Kyle, however, is mentally debating whether he should pretend to be asleep and move closer to Laura. Maybe put an arm around her or something. Mark his territory, so to speak.

He knows that it won't do him any good, it won't change how Laura feels, but it might make him feel less sorry for himself about his predicament.

All the thinking does them both in in the end, and before long, all four of them are asleep.

Laura's Point of View

I'm back in the meadow, riding along next to the sort of familiar, yet still strange woman again.

"Where're we goin'?" I ask.

"You know where we're goin'," she replies with a smile. "You've been there before."

I look in away from her, and toward where we're going, and frown. This isn't the meadow.

We've stopped in front of a large window, and are standing there, looking through it at the family that's inside.

A Christmas tree is in the corner of the room, the lights twinkling in the dim light. A merry fire is crackling in the fireplace, the shadows bouncing off the walls.

The mother and father sit on the couch, their daughter on the floor in front of them.

"That's Nani and Papi," I mutter once I recognize them. They look younger than I've ever seen them. "But who's that?" I don't recognize the daughter. Is it Mama? Or me?

"That, Lomasi, you must figure out for yourself," the woman replies, turning her horse away from the window. I look back inside, and the little girl looks straight at me. She lifts her little hand and waves, smiling a gap toothed smile that makes my heart melt.

Who are you?

3rd Person Point of View

"Laura!" a voice whispers, pulling the girl from her dream. She rolls over, swinging her arm around to try and get the intruder to leave her alone. Can they see she's trying to figure something out?

"Ow!" Louis says once Laura's hand connects with his face. "Laura, wake up!"

"What?" she mutters, turning back over.

"My horse is gone," Louis says.

Laura sits up, rubbing her eyes. "Whaddya mean, gone?" When her eyes finally focus, she takes in Louis' distraught state. His eyes are wide and worried, his hair thrown everywhere on his head.

"He's not with the other horses, and I can't find him anywhere," Louis says.

Laura looks out the dusty window, taking notice of the sun just coming up over the horizon.

"Why th' hell're you up so early?" she asks.

"I couldn't sleep," he admits. "but Frodo's gone!"

"Did  _Sam_  go with 'im?" she asks sarcastically, nudging Kyle to wake him up.

"Laura, this is serious!" he groans. "I lost a horse!"

"Ya didn't lose 'im, 'e jus' wandered off. We'll find 'im," Laura assures him. "Fer now, let's get somethin' ta eat."

Back at the ranch, the three guys are up and about, moving around in the kitchen, trying to make their own breakfast. They're mostly just succeeding in making a mess. Pancake batter all over the counter, some on the wall, grease spilled on the stove, spoons and pans everywhere.

"Well. I've got three pancakes out of all that," Harry says, looking at the mess.

"Should we clean it up?" Zayn asks. Niall shrugs.

"I mean, if we let it dry we could just scrape it off, right?" he asks, looking over at Harry.

"I suppose. It should be dry by the time we finish eating and feeding the horses. We could probably leave it until then."

"We should be back soon," Laura tells Kyle and Liam, holding out her arm to help Louis swing up onto Rebel behind her. "Couldn'ta gone too far."

Kyle hands her the saddlebags, which she slings over Rebel's shoulders, seeing as they left the saddle off the big horse to make the ride more comfortable.

"Don't take too awful long," he says quietly. He isn't keen on Louis going with Laura, being alone with her for who knows how long.

"We won't. Oughta be back 'fore noon," Laura replies. She turns back to Louis. "You ready?" When he nods, she nudges Rebel with her heels, and then they're trotting off, leaving Kyle and Liam to start the work on the roof of the small cabin.

"How do you know where to go?" Louis asks after they've gone far enough that they can't see the cabin anymore.

"Tracks," Laura replies, pointing to the hoofprints on the ground. "Good thing th' ground isn't super hard, this mighta been a lot tougher."

Louis hadn't really known where to put his hands when he first climbed up behind Laura, and now he isn't sure if he should leave them where they rest on her hips or move them somewhere else. Every time he goes to move them, Rebel makes a sudden movement and he has to hang on to something, so...

"How'd ya tie th' hobbles?" Laura asks absentmindedly, unaware of Louis' inner debate, focused on following the trail the missing horse left behind.

"With a knot?" Louis answers.

"You sure?" Laura inquires as she pulls Rebel to a halt. "Cause there's th' rope." She points to the length of rope lying in the dirt. "Y'wanna pick that up please?"

Louis swings his leg over, hopping down onto the ground to pick up the rope. He takes Laura's arm when it's offered, letting her pulls him back up onto the horse.

He won't ever admit it out loud, but he's silently amazed at the quiet strength of the tall girl.

"Show me how ya tied th' knot," Laura says as she nudges Rebel into motion again. She holds one arm out for Louis to use, and he loops the rope around it, tying the ends the way he had seen Kyle do it.

"Like that," he says once he's finished. Laura looks down at the knot, furrowing her eyebrows.

"What th' hell kind'a knot 's that?"

"That's how Kyle showed me," Louis says morosely.

"Course 'e did," Laura mutters. "Here. Gimme yer arm." She'd hoped Kyle would be nice and not pull something like this, but she'd been expecting Kyle to be a bit grouchy toward the newcomers. Especially since she'd been getting along with them so well. He'd always been picky about that, like he wasn't sure about sharing her with others.

She drapes the reins over Rebel's neck, letting the big horse keep walking.

"What are you doing?!" Louis asks anxiously. "Don't you have to steer?"

"All in th' legs, silly. Don't need reins," Laura replies with a smile. "Gimme yer arm. I'll show ya how ta actually tie 'em."

Meanwhile, Kyle and Liam were up on the roof, hammering some shingles into place. It seems like most of the work involves being up on the roof. For this anyway. It's a good thing neither of them are afraid of heights.

The two had kept the conversing to a minimum, mostly because they had no idea what to say to each other. Liam wasn't sure if Kyle was this standoffish normally or if it was just because he didn't really know Liam. But he did know that Laura was a safe thing to talk about with Kyle, so he decided to try again at starting a conversation.

"How long do you think it'll be until they get back?" he asks, glancing over at Kyle.

The blonde looks up at him, then in the direction that Laura and Louis rode away.

"Not too awful long," he replies, returning to hammering a nail through a shingle.

Well, that's the end of that.

"There 'e is!" Laura says once she spots the white horse.

"Finally!" Louis groans. To him, it feels like it's been days since they set out, when in reality it's only been a couple hours. Laura stops Rebel once they're next to Frodo, and Louis hops off.

"Wait a second," he says, realizing that his horse doesn't have a bridle. Or reins. "How am  _I_  supposed to steer?"


	34. Chapter 34

Laura’s Point of View

“Y’know, this’d be a whole lot easier iff’n ya rode yer own horse,” I tell Louis.

After we’d found Frodo, he hadn’t wanted to ride without anything to hold on to, and the rope was only so long, I barely had enough to pony the horse along beside Rebel, not close to enough for makeshift reins. So we’re still riding double. 

It’s not too awful, I suppose. The sun’s just starting to heat everything up, that’s about the worst of it. 

“You said we could do it this way though,” he replies, setting his chin on my shoulder, “so ‘s your fault.”

“Nothin’s my fault,” I say. “Yer face is scratchy.”

“Is that a bad thing?” he asks, rubbing his chin farther into my shoulder, the stubble scratching my skin. 

“It’s yer face, not mine,” I answer. “Don’t make me no nevermind.”

“Finally, someone who  _doesn’t_  care if I don’t shave,” he murmurs. “It seems like everyone’s telling me I look better without a beard.”

I shrug. “Ya look ‘bout th’ same both ways ta me,” I tell him. He answers with a yawn.

“ ‘M sleepy,” he says.

“ _Yer_  sleepy?” I ask incrediously. “You keep me up half th’ night with yer snorin’, an’  _yer_  sleepy?”

“It’s not that bad,” he protests.

“You kiddin’? Ya sound like a durned chainsaw.”

I try to imitate what he sounds like, making a snorty snoring noise that makes both of us laugh. 

“No I don’t!” he argues. 

“Yeah, ya do.”

“Nuh uh!”

“Yer asleep! How would ya know?”

“I - “ he starts, but falters once he can’t think of anything. “I suppose you’re right about that.”

“Exactly.”

“Just about that though,” he says. I can hear the smirk in his voice, and nudge him with my shoulder. 

“Yer beard looks stupid,” I say jokingly.

"Well, your hair looks - actually it doesn't look that bad from this angle. That one time when you woke up it was all over the place."

I laugh a little bit. "Yeah. Got a mind of it's own sometimes."

“So, Laura?” he asks after a little while. 

“So, Louis?” I reply. 

“Can you teach me how to throw knives?”

“Yeah, n' then we can braid rope, n’ put flowers in our hair, n’ smoke that old pipe Papi’s got in ‘is garage,” I reply sarcastically. 

“Really?” he asks excitedly. 

I turn in the saddle to look back at him. 

“You really wanna?”

He shrugs. “Yeah, it sounds fun.”

I turn back, shaking my head with a smile. This kid is something else. 

“Yer weird,” I tell him.

“No I’m not. I’m just like you.”

“Only ’m prettier.”

By the time we get back, Kyle and Liam are done with the roof, and are packing up to go back to the ranch. 

“Looks like we got out of most o’ th’ work,” I say quietly to Louis as we ride up to the cabin. I see him silently fist pump out of the corner of my eye, and fight back a giggle. 

“Took ya long enough,” Kyle says once he sees us. 

“Weren’t my fault,” I call back, waiting for Louis to slide off Rebel’s back before hopping to the ground myself. 

“Was too,” Louis mutters. 

“Nuh uh,” I sass, tossing him the rope so he can take his horse. 

Pretty soon we’re all riding back, the bright sunlight beating down on us. 

“So when do you think we’ll get back?” Liam asks. 

“Probably ‘round sunset. Maybe a little later. Left a ‘lil later than we’ were s’posed to,” I reply. 

Everyone’s pretty quiet after that, the only sounds being the horses’ hooves on the ground, and Lassie’s barking once in awhile when she finds something to chase. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Louis swaying a little more than usual as he sits in the saddle. I look over, seeing him riding along with his eyes closed, his head bowed, shoulders slumped. Asleep. 

That is a talent I’ve never had, being able to fall asleep in the saddle. I’d love to sometimes, but Rebel isn’t exactly the kind of horse that I can just let go wherever he wants. 

Louis really must have been up for a while last night, if he’s that tired. 

I ride up alongside him, taking ahold of one of his reins, looping it around Rebel’s saddle, just in case Frodo decides to wander off while he’s got his head. I pull my hat off, placing it on top of Louis’ messy hair, letting him sleep in the shade. 

Louis’ Point of View

“You’re sure you’ve got him?” I hear a voice ask.

“Yeah, go on ahead, I’ll take ‘im inside,” another voice answers. I feel hands on my feet, gently tugging them out of the stirrups, before I’m pulled over out of my saddle, falling across someone’s shoulders. 

I keep my eyes shut, mostly because I don’t want to walk, but also because I’m not sure if I’m dreaming or not. Nobody ever carries me to bed anymore. 

The person walks up some stairs, muttering about how I should have woken up already, and that they’re going too easy on me. It sounds like Laura, but I can’t quite tell. 

A door is opened, and judging by the creaking sound it makes, it’s the door to the bunkhouse. 

“Laura!” a deep voice calls. I hear feet on the stairs, coming toward us. “What happened?”

I’m set down on something soft, probably one of the couches, and shaken a little. 

“ ‘E fell asleep,” Laura answers. She shakes my shoulder again. “Louis, wake up. You gotta go ta bed.”

“I don’ wanna,” I mutter, rolling over and putting my face into the couch cushion. “Me stay here.”

“A’right, suit yerself,” she says amusedly. Then I hear her walk away.

“So, you do realize she just  _carried_  you in here,” Harry says, sitting down on the couch by my feet.

“Yeah, so?”

“And she was so focused on you that she completely missed the-” he’s cut off by a loud shout from Laura.

“What th’  _hell’d_ you do ta my kitchen?”

Friday was an easy day. Just feeding the horses in the morning, and moving some hay into the tack room afterward. Then we just hung out in the bunkhouse until it was time to go down the road. 

Laura, Jeremy, and Kyle are up first tonight, and as they set up their stuff, the lads and I are sitting around one of our usual tables, Erica, Amy, Ann, Ashley and Rob sitting with us. 

I hear Jeremy’s familiar voice introducing their group, and then Kyle and Jeremy are playing, Laura standing without her guitar by her microphone, ready to sing. 

_Well I've been saved by the grace of southern charm._

_I got a mouth like a sailor and yours is more like a Hallmark card._

_If you wanna pick a fight, well I'm gonna have to say good night._

_I don't have to be hateful, I can just say bless your heart._

_And even though I don't belong with your high life friends._

_Doesn't mean we don't get together and try to make amends._

_It's easier, can't you see? Let's agree to just disagree._

_We don't have to like each other but it's sure fun to pretend._

_So let's shake hands and reach across those parting lines._

_You got your friends just like I got mine._

_We might think a little differently but we got a lot in common you will see we're just like you, only prettier._

_Everybody says you gotta know your enemies._

She turns toward the table at the front, where I assume Lori, Jeremy’s girlfriend, is sitting, indirectly singing to her.

_Even if they only weigh a hundred pounds and stand five foot three._

_If you just smile and behave, you can always get your way._

_It's a universal plan that'll get you where you can in all societies._

_So let's shake hands and reach across those parting lines._

_You got your friends just like I got mine._

_We might think a little differently but we got a lot in common you will see we're just like you, only prettier._

_Hey!_

Kyle steps up, strumming out a bouncy solo that has Laura dancing a bit, tapping her feet and shaking her hips until she has to sing again. 

_Let's shake hands and reach across those parting lines_

_You got your friends just like I got mine_

_We might think a little differently but we got a lot in common you will see_

_We're just like you, only prettier_

She looks back at the table in the front.

_Well I'll keep drinkin' and you'll keep gettin' skinnier_

She looks at me, and winks.

_I'm just like you,_ _only prettier_

“Hey!” I exclaim quietly, mostly to myself. I said that yesterday.

Laura smiles, like she planned it. She probably did.

After they finish, and Laura comes back to sit with the rest of us, I ask, “What was that?”

“What was what?” she asks, her eyes glinting mischievously. 

“You know.”

“How do you know I know?” she asks with a smirk. We stare at each other for a second, then burst out laughing. I lightly shove her shoulder, and she just laughs harder. 

“Lauraaaa!” Erica calls from across the table. 

“Whaaat?” Laura replies, still laughing.

“Are we doin’ anythin’ special fer fair week?” the shorter girl asks. 

“Yeah. There’s gonna be dinner down at my camper ev’ry night ‘cept Tuesday. That don’t go farther’n us though,” she says, motioning to those of us sitting in the circle. “Don’t wanna haveta make food fer no more. Gonna be tough as it is.”

“Wait, what?” I ask. 

“Fair’s next week.” Ann answers from her spot on Niall’s lap. 

“Like, a fair? With rides?” Niall asks excitedly, looking up at her. She shakes her head.

“Naw, this is th’ one’s jus’ animals,” Laura says.

“So why do you camp there?” Harry asks. 

“Cause we gotta take care of the animals,” Erica answers. “An’ it’s too far ta drive it every day.”

“So how long do you stay there?” I ask. 

“ ‘Bout a week,” Laura responds. 

When we get back in the truck, there’s more questions. 

“What do we do while you’re gone?” Liam asks. 

“Well, I ‘as hopin’ a few of ya’d come with me. Might make things easier. It ain’t too hard, jus’ movin’ cattle, feedin’ th’ ones that’re up by the barn, feedin’ th’ horses. I’ll make ‘nother list iff’n ya want,” she answers. 

“How many do you want to go with you?” Niall asks. 

She thinks about it for a few seconds. 

“Prolly three. That’s ‘bout as much ‘s th’ camper can hold. Iff’n ya’ll don’t wanna go, it’s a’right, I can manage, but I’d be mighty grateful fer th’ help.”

“What would we be helping with?” Zayn asks. 

“Puttin’ up gates, movin’ ribbon boxes, helpin’ run th’ shows. It don’t sound like much, but it’s tougher than you’d think.”

From the sound of that fair board meeting, there’s even more to Laura’s job than that. 

“Who’s gonna be there?” Niall asks. 

“Ann ain’t, iff’n that’s what ya wanna know,” Laura replies with a smile. “She’s got some family thing.” 

She pauses, turning the dial on the radio. 

“But Erica, Ashley, an’ Rob’ll be there.” I notice her voice soften when she says Rob’s name, and the corner of her mouth pulls up just a little bit. She must be really gone for this guy. 


	35. Chapter 35

Zayn’s Point of View

“A’right, looks like we’re done fer now,” Laura says, her hand on her hips. “Thank ya fer comin’ out ta help,” she tells Erica’s brothers. They nod. “Anytime.”

We’ve been at the fairgrounds all morning, setting up the pens and gates for the animals that the members of Laura’s club will be bringing later in the evening. The five of us lads figured out who would be staying with Laura for the week and who would be staying back at the ranch yesterday. Niall said that it was alright if he stayed behind, because if Ann wasn’t going to be there, he didn’t have a serious reason to be there. Personally I think that it’s also because Laura mentioned the crappy phone service, and he wouldn’t be able to text Ann all the time if he went with us.

Liam wanted to come, probably because of Erica. The poor lad won’t shut up about her, going on and on about how he never sees her boyfriend with her, so why are they even together if they don’t go places with each other? He’s got it pretty bad, from what I can tell. 

I wanted to go because that way I won’t be responsible for cleaning up the kitchen if the others decide to make a mess again. (I still haven’t quite recovered from the last episode of that.) And also because I wanted to do something besides move cattle. 

Louis was the third one that came, for obvious reasons. He and Laura work pretty well together when they’re talking to each other, making an almost unstoppable team.  

”Ya’ll want lunch? I’ve got stuff ta make sandwiches up at th’ camper,” she offers. 

“Naw, we gotta get home. Gotta wash the cattle ‘fore we come back,” one of them replies. He turns to Erica. “You comin’ with us or are ya gonna stay here?”

“I’ll stay with Laura. Be back home around three,” she replies. “We gotta do the decoratin’.”

“Alright. See ya then,” the  other brother says, and then they’re walking out to the large field where all the vehicles are parked. 

I thought that this would be just a cute little county fair, with a few animals. Nope. There has to be at least two or three hundred people here, most of them teenagers, to set up. Laura’s said that most of them show more than one species of animal, so that’s a lot of animals. 

“Somebody carry this, please,” Laura says, holding up a box full of tools. I reach over and grab ahold of it. “Thanks.”

Then she walks over to Louis, who’s just finished taking a drink out of a water bottle, and jumps on his back, wrapping her arms around his neck. 

“Onward!” she shouts, pointing in the direction of the camper. Louis laughs, sliding his hands under her knees and starting to walk in the direction she’s pointing, asking her about something. 

Liam, Erica, and I follow them, talking about Erica’s steer named Biscuit, and how she’s really excited to bring him. She’s almost completely sure that this is the best one she’s raised, like, ever. 

She also has two pigs that she’s bringing, a feeder calf, and a horse. 

“You’re going to be busy,” Liam observes. Erica shrugs, a wide smile on her face.

“I’m always busy. It’s what makes fair week fun.” 

She seems more smiley today than normal, considering we’ve been carrying heavy gates all morning. (No joke, just one of them takes  _three_  people to lift.) What’s going on?

“So being busy makes things fun?” I ask curiously.

The short girl turns to me and nods, her ponytail bobbing up and down. 

“Yeah. If I ain’t got nothing to do, it gets boring.”

Suddenly there’s a loud squeal, then laughter ahead of us. I look up, and see Laura lying in the grass, Louis standing over her, both of them laughing.

“I ain’t seen her that happy for a while,” Erica says with a smile. 

“Is she usually grumpy or something?” Liam asks.

“Not exactly, but she hasn’t just  _laughed_  like that since...Paul,” Erica says, her voice fading out as she finishes her sentence. 

Laura’s Point of View

After we make it back to the camper, and we’ve all made our sandwiches, we sit down around the camper to eat. 

“What’s got you so smiley?” I ask Erica as I sit down on the floor next to her. 

“Nothing,” she answers, looking down at her plate.

“Bull. What is it?” I ask, an amused smile on my face. I haven’t seen Erica this happy for a while. Not since…

“I um… I broke up with him.” 

I feel my eyes get wide, and out of the corner of my eye I see Liam’s head snap up, looking over to where we’re sitting. Real subtle there, big guy.

“Really?”

“Yeah,” she answers. 

“This ain’t like last time where ya said ya did an’ ya’ll was back together th’ next week, right?” That was an eventful weekend.

She shakes her head. “Nope. We’re done this time.”

“Good fer you!” I say with a smile. It’s about time. He’s a jackass, and there ain’t no changing it. I’m glad she got out before it was too late. 

We finish our sandwiches, and then I ask, “so ya wanna head up there now, or wait awhile?”

Erica sighs, then stands. 

“Might as well go now,” she says. 

I pull myself up and throw my plate away before grabbing the box with all the decorations in it and sliding my feet into my boots. 

“We’ll be back later. Don’t go breakin’ nothin’,” I tell the guys as Erica and I walk out the door. 

As soon we cross the driveway that goes by the camper, Erica starts asking questions.

“So, what’s Liam like?”

“Y’gonna hop on th’ Payne train now?” I ask with a smirk. I’ve almost been expecting this, so it’s not really a surprise. The way she looks at him is enough for me to figure it out. 

“What? No, I was… Just asking…” she stutters, her face turning red. 

I laugh.

“ ‘e’s a’right, I s’pose. Perdy nice. Takes some things very literally,” I tell her. “Why?”

She shrugs noncommittally. “No reason. Just curious.” 

Louis’ Point of View

“I’m bored,” Liam whines from his spot on the couch.

“Then go do something,” Zayn says, not looking up from his phone. 

Liam grins. It’s so wide that I can see it from my spot across the small living space. 

“Just go talk to her already,” I groan. His head snaps over to look at me.

“Who?”

“Erica. Just go ask her out or something. You’ve had that stupid grin on your face all afternoon,” Zayn says.

“Yeah, what he said,” I agree.

“You think she’d say yes?” Liam asks, suddenly insecure. 

“If you do that weird thing with your eyes, and - yeah, that thing,” I tell him as he makes this face, with big, shiny eyes and a half pouty lip. “There ya go, you look like a puppy, no one can say no to a puppy.”

“Where would we go though? It’s not like I have a car or anything.”

“There’s milkshakes in the kitchen-diner thing on the other side of the driveway. Laura says they’re good,” Zayn mumbles, scowling at his phone. 

“Okay, milkshakes. That’ll work,” Liam says. “Is it open?”

“Opens tamarra,” I hear Laura say as she opens the door. She walks in, opens a cupboard door, grabs a small box from it, and closes it. “Fergot th’ staples,” she says sheepishly. 

“You could have called one of us to bring it to you,” I tell her. 

“Nah, it’s a’right. Needed a break anyway.” She looks out the window by the door, then at Liam, adding, “Erica won’t shut up ‘bout you.” She changes the pitch of her voice, making it higher and a bit more girly. “What’s ‘e like? What’s ‘is favorite this ‘r that? Liam, Liam, Liam.”

“Really?” he asks, sitting up. 

Laura nods. “Really really.”

“Told you. She’ll say yes,” I say.

“What’re we talkin’ ‘bout now?” Laura asks curiously. 

“Liam’s gonna ask Erica to go get milkshakes with him,” Zayn explains, still frowning at his phone. 

Laura’s eyes get wide. “What? Really?” she asks with a wide grin.

“I suppose I am now,” Liam half grumbles, his attempt at being grumpy ruined by the smile on his face. “Tomorrow though.” He turns to Laura. “She’ll be here, right?”

Laura nods. “Yeah, she’ll be here. She’ll be campin’ down th’ driveway a ‘lil ways with ‘her brothers an’ ‘er little sister all week.” 

“All week?” Liam asks. 

“Yeah. Iff’n yer lucky, ya might get ta walk ‘er back ‘r somethin’,” Laura says. She looks out the window again. “I oughta be gettin’ back up there, ‘fore she thinks I left ‘er.” 

“Could you maybe take Liam with you?” I ask, stopping her as she opens the door. “He won’t stop going on about how bored he is.” 

Laura turns to Liam. “You wanna come up there? Might need someone ta hold stuff. Erica ain’t quite tall ‘nuff ta reach some of it.”

Liam jumps at the invitation, quickly moving to put his boots on. “Sure, I mean, if it’s alright.”

“Yer fine.” She looks pointedly at Zayn and I. “Don’t break nothin’.” And then she’s out the door, going down the metal steps, Liam right behind her. 

I hear them come back into the camper a few hours later, waking me from a nap on the comfy bed in the upper half of the mobile home. 

“It weren’t all that bad,” Laura says, her tone comforting.

“Are you kidding? I nearly tripped her!” Liam protests. 

“But ya didn’t. Don’t think it’d change how she sees ya even iff’n ya did,” Laura counters, her voice getting closer. “At least ya asked before ya almost tripped ‘er,” she adds, making Liam groan.

I hear her footsteps on the carpeted steps leading to the upper part of the camper as Liam tells Zayn what happened, and how he finally has Erica’s number. 

“What’re you doin’ in here?” Laura asks, nudging me. 

I crack my eyes open, looking up at her. 

“Sleeping. What’s it look like?” I say.

“Well, move yer face. Yer takin’ up th’ whole bed,” she says, shoving at my shoulder as she climbs in. I scoot over so that I’m more or less only taking up half of the bed, instead of laying in the middle. 

“What are you doing?” I ask, confused when she lays down on her stomach on the opposite side of the bed from me.

“Sleepin’. What’s it look like?” she sasses, setting an alarm on her phone before closing her eyes. 

“Don’t you, you know, have stuff to do?” I ask. 

“Not at th’ moment,” she mumbles. “Got an hour ‘fore check in. Gonna be a long night.”

I roll onto my back, letting her fall asleep without any further pestering. I can hear Zayn cursing at his phone as he loses yet another game of Temple Run, and Liam laughing at him, probably while texting Erica. 

It’s nice here. Quiet. Peaceful. I like it. 

Correction. It  _was_  quiet and peaceful, about half an hour ago. Now that there’s people here, not so much. 

“Senior,” Laura tells me from her spot in front of the large scale as the next exhibitor walks her calf in. I check the box next to ‘senior’ on the card that she hands me, and wait for her to balance out the scale so I can write down how much the calf weighs. 

It’s actually kind of calming, within all the mooing and hubbub of the beef barn, watching Laura work. She always does the same thing when there’s a new calf coming into the barn. Take the card from the exhibitor, then hand it to me, wait for the calf to walk onto the scale, help if she needs to, then move the weights on the side until she’s got it balanced, then she tells me the weight of the calf, I write it down, and she lets the kid take their calf to it’s pen. 

She’s very well prepared for this job. There’s a large envelope to put the cards into, and a clipboard with all the names of the kids who are bringing calves, so that she can make sure everyone is here. 

“Two thirty,” she says, opening the metal gate and turning back to me. “How many more?” 

I look down at the sheet, writing down the weight before crossing off the name of the girl who just brought her calf through. 

“Three or four,” I tell Laura, handing her the clipboard. She nods, looking at the long list of names. An enormous steer walks through, right behind her, and she doesn’t even flinch. 

I’m not scared of it, but then I’m on the other side of a table. She’s right there, in the thick of it, and she isn’t scared at all. She doesn’t seem to be scared of much at all, actually. 

Not even spiders. Figured that out when there was a large spider crawling on her hand when she woke up from her nap this afternoon. She didn’t scream, didn’t flail about like I would have, she just slapped it and brushed it off into the trash can. Simple as that. 

Laura nods again, handing the clipboard back to me before hopping up onto the table, letting her legs dangle off the edge. 

“So is this all you have to do today?” I ask. 

“Naw, after this there’s a meetin’ with all th’ kids, gotta tell ‘em how th’ week’s gonna go. Then there’s a ‘lil break ‘fore I gotta lock th’ gates up,” she replies. She turns sideways to look at me as I come around the table to sit next to her. “Why? Ya bored a’ready?”

I shake my head. “No, not yet.”

“Iff’n ya want, once all th’ animals’re here, I can show ya ‘round,” she offers. 

“That sounds fun,” I reply with a smile. 

A few hours later, after everyone has their animals settled in and are either heading back to their homes or to their temporary lodging for the week, Laura takes me on a trip around the fairground. 

First we go to the pig barn, which, while it doesn’t smell the best, is actually pretty cool. 

“They’re so small!” I exclaim, looking into one of the pens where there are two little piglets are asleep, nearly hidden under the straw covering the floor of the pen. 

“Cute, ain’t they?” Laura asks with a smile.

“Yeah. I always thought pigs were all dirty and rolled around in the mud all day,” I say quietly as one of the piglets that’s awake stumbles over to the edge of the wooden enclosure, sniffing my boot. 

“They us’ly do,” Laura says. “They clean ‘em up fer th’ fair.”

“What’s with the mud though?” I ask, reaching down to pet the piglet. 

“Pigs can’t sweat. Mud keeps ‘em cooled off.”

“What? Literally?”

She nods. “Literally.”

“That’s weird.” I tap the piglet’s nose, then straighten up. “What’s next?”

She smiles. “How ‘bout sheep?” 


	36. Chapter 36

Laura’s Point of View

I wake up with a foot in my face. I have no clue how it got there, because I’m almost completely certain that I went to bed alone. Why is there another person in bed with me?

With some difficulty, I push the foot away from my face, and find that it’s attached to a leg. And a body, that belongs to Louis. I roll over, reaching for my phone to shut my alarm off, and the foot comes back, right on top of my face. 

I shove it back off, and Louis falls off the bed and onto the floor. 

“What the-” he grumbles, his voice low and groggy, almost like molasses. He crawls back onto the bed, careful to lay with his feet at the proper end.

“Where’d you come from?” I ask. 

“The floor was really cold. I was gonna ask, but you were already asleep,” he says, running his hand through his hair. “I didn’t think you’d mind too much.”

I shake my head. “I s’pose yer a’right. Jus’ don’t put yer feet in my face next time.” I yawn, stretching my tired limbs. “But since yer up, how ‘bout ya come with me ta open th’ gates?”

He glances at the clock on the nightstand. “It’s five in the morning!”

I raise an eyebrow. “Yer point?”

He put his hands up. “Alright, I’ll come with you.”

We both stumble around the camper, doing our best not to wake the other two, grabbing a couple water bottles and my rather large ring of keys. 

When we finally get out the door and climb into the truck, the first rays of sunlight are starting to poke over the horizon. 

We drive around the fairgrounds, stopping at the gates to get out and unlock them, looping the large chains around posts to hold them open.

At one gate, there's a group of parents standing there, waiting to get in.

"Why are they up so early?" Louis asks with with a yawn as we drive back to the camper.

"So they can do their kid's work fer 'em," I reply. "Then they go ta work fer th' rest o' th' day."

I park the truck in front of the camper, and we stumble out, quietly going back inside. 

“Well,” I say, flopping back onto the bed, “two more hours till we gotta be up again.”

“You’re going back to sleep?” he asks. I nod.

“Why? What’re you gonna do?” I ask. 

“I dunno,” he replies with a shrug. 

“You ain’t gonna go back ta sleep?” He shakes his head.

“Can’t. Once I’m up, I’m up. I’ve always been like that.” I raise an eyebrow, and he shrugs again, a barely visible wince crossing his face. 

“How many gates’d you lift yesterday?” I ask. 

“I don’t know,” he answers vaguely, his hand moving unconsciously to his shoulder and sort of rubbing it.

I wave him over with my hands. “C’mere, ‘ll make it better.”

He looks confused, but crawls over anyway, stretching out on his stomach, laying his head on one of the pillows. 

I set my hands on his shoulders, and begin kneading the strong muscles, moving my thumbs in small circles to get rid of the soreness.

“Where’d you learn this stuff?” he asks as I swing a leg over him, sitting on his back. 

“College,” I reply.

“What else did you learn in college?” he asks.

“Well, there’s a nerve that runs right here,” I tell him, tracing over his shoulder with my finger, “that can mess ya up iff’n it gets twisted th’ wrong way.”

He hums, his eyes closing. 

“An’ there’s another one over here, that runs through here,” I continue, tracing the lines over his shirt. “An’ iff’n ya push right there,” I poke a spot on his shoulder, “it makes it so ya can’t move yer arm.”

“What?” he questions.

“An’ there’s a buncha nerves right here,” I tell him, sliding my fingers under his arm.

“Hey!” he protests, trying to wiggle away.

“An’ ‘cause o’ th’ way yer layin’, you got almost no leverage,” I add, tickling him.

“Not fair!” he laughs.

“Shh! Yer gonna wake ‘em up!” I laugh, moving my fingers faster. 

“Laura!” he almost squeaks.

“Would you two shut up!” I hear Zayn grumble from his spot on the couch, making both of us jump.

“Yeah, be quiet,” I whisper, falling onto the mattress next to Louis. 

“Shut up, it wasn’t my fault,” he hisses, pushing at my shoulder. 

“Go ta sleep,” I say, tossing a pillow at him. 

Louis’ Point of View

“So go ta that table over there fer the box, an’ that’n fer the drawing,” Laura directs one of the parents in her club, their short redhaired daughter already wandering toward the first table. 

“Thank you!” the mom says as she begins to follow.

“I think that’s th’ last one from th’ club,” Laura mutters. It’s only about eight in the morning, but the fairgrounds is already full of people, most of them in the building closest to the gate. 

Today is the day that the kids get all their craft projects judged, and there’s a lot of them. Laura’s been busy all morning, stationed at the front table, telling people which booth to go to depending on what project their child is holding. Most of what she’s told them has been from memory, seeing she only looked at the layout sheet twice before someone asked to borrow it and never came back.  

Laura leans back against the table, rubbing her eye with her fist. We didn’t end up going back to sleep, both of us being too giggly and excited. What for, I have no clue. So far today has been all work, moving tables and setting up chairs. I’m not sure I can remember what I ate for breakfast. 

“An’ there’s th’ replacement,” Laura says with a smile as Erica walks in, Liam behind her, both of them carrying milkshakes. So that’s what he was all smiley about this morning. “I’ll be back in ‘bout half ‘n hour. Behave yerselves,” Laura tells them as we start walking away. They just look at each other and start laughing.

“So where to now?” I ask as we walk out into the sunlight. 

“Ribbon trailer. Gotta move some of ‘em ‘round ‘fore th’ first show. Takin’ trophies an’ one’a th’ boxes ta th’ pavillion, then we’re back in there till lunch,” Laura answers. 

“What’s today again?”

“Dogs,” she replies as we reach the trailer with all the ribbons in it. She pulls a key from her pocket and unlock the door, opening it and stepping inside. She pulls a box from one of the stacks and hands it to me, grabbing another box for herself, then steps back out, bumping the door with her hip to close it as she digs in her pocket for the key to lock it. 

Liam’s Point of View

“What else do you have to do today?” I ask Erica as we sit at the table. 

“Gotta wash my steers, maybe take Snowflake for a ride.”

“Do you want help?”

She giggles. “That would be nice.”

Around noon, I follow her to the barn with all the cattle in it, and wait as she unties her beef steer, leading it out onto the washrack. I bring the bucket full of soaps and brushes, walking behind them.

Erica ties the rope attached to the steer’s halter to a post on the fence that runs around the area lined with hoses, then reaches for the bucket. 

“So how’s this work?” I ask. 

“Like washing a dog,” she replies. “Get him wet, soap him up, rinse him off, then try to dry him off before he starts shaking the water off.”

Sound simple enough. 

It wasn’t. 

After about three minutes of scrubbing, Biscuit started trying to shake the soap off, which flung some onto Erica. And apparently laughing at the way the suds got stuck in her hair wasn’t what she wanted, because she threw some at me, and did I mention that I didn’t mean to spray her with the hose on purpose? I really didn’t, it just happened. 

After we stopped our water fight, and finished washing Biscuit, we walked back down to Erica’s camper, running into Laura and Louis on their way back up to the barns. 

There were some weird looks exchanged, but nothing was said about our soaked clothes. 

Louis' Point of View

"Get offa me," is the first thing I hear when I wake up.

"What?" I ask, blinking slowly and looking around. It's still very dark inside the camper, a little bit of light from the floodlights outside making it's way through the thick curtains on the windows.

"Get yer foot offa my back," Laura mutters, rolling over.

"My foot isn't anywhere near you," I grumble, shifting onto my side to look at her.

Her eyes are closed, and little half snores are coming from her parted lips. She's still asleep.

"Get it off," she groans.

"Alright, give me a second," I reply, laughing a little at the thought of having a conversation with her while she's asleep.

"Purple monkeys're laughin' at you," she mumbles.

"What purple monkeys, love?"

"Them ones, behind you," she replies, "with th' blue bananas."

"Of course, how silly of me, I should have seen them."

"Darn right."

"What were you talking about in the middle of the night?" Liam asks sleepily when I walk down the steps into the main part of the camper, looking for something to eat.

"Purple monkeys with blue bananas," I reply.

I open the fridge, and pull out a box of PopTarts. How did these get in here?

"How'd that happen?" Liam asks.

I shrug. "I dunno. Laura started it."

"Was she awake?"

I shake my head, opening one of the foil packages and sitting on the floor.

Liam's taken up the space where the table usually is, the legs of it folded underneath and the cushions of the seats laid out on top, and Zayn's taken the couch, so there's not really anywhere else to sit.

"She talks in her sleep?" Liam asks amusedly.

I nod. "I guess so."

Zayn's Point of View

"And stop," Laura says, her voice echoing in the large barn. All the kids stop their calves, then turn around, moving the calves' feet with the long sticks they hold in their hands.

Laura's got all the kids that show feeder calves in the show ring, practicing for later tonight when they're going to show for real. She's been giving them pointers and reminders, helping all of them to be the most prepared that they can be for tonight.

"Make sure ya watch th' judge," Laura tells them, and immediately most of them snap their heads up, looking for her. " 'Member, th' judge is th' prettiest person in th' ring. Don't look away unless ya have to."

She turns to make a face at the lads and I, looking back at the kids when some of the girls giggle. I see her smirk, then she turns back to us.

"Hey Zayn," she calls, motioning for me to come down there.

I stand from the bench that I'm sitting on, and walk over to the fence surrounding the show ring.

"What?"

"Could you be th' judge?" It's easier ta see what they're doin' iff'n I'm outside th' circle."

"Me?" I ask, pointing to myself. "What do I do?"

"Jus' stand in th' middle, watch 'em an' figure out which kid works with their calf th' best. I'll tell 'em what ta do."

I nod. I can do that. "Okay."

Laura smiles then opens the gate, letting me in. I walk to the middle of the circle of kids and calves.

"A'righty, this 's Zayn. He's th' judge. Keep yer eyes on th' judge," Laura says with a smirk.

The kids look up, all of their eyes on me as they start walking again.

They continue like that for about five minutes, walking in a circle around me, stopping once in awhile and setting their calves' feet with the sticks.

I watch them, trying to choose who seems to be working the best with their calves. There's one blonde girl who never looks away from me, and her calf follows her quietly, not putting up much of a fuss at all. On the other side of the circle, there's a boy who looks very similar to the girl who has a calf that looks a bit too short for him, it's head barely reaching his hip. He's got the same sort of thing going with his calf, an almost mirror image of the girl across from him.

Scattered in between them are several other kids who look like they could have used some more practice, but they're all doing pretty good.

Laura's sitting on the fence, telling each kid something that they can do better or something that they're doing good. Every once in a while she'll call for them to stop, and after a bit she'll tell them to walk again.

After about an hour, Laura tells the kids to go put their calves back, and let them get a drink before they go eat their lunch.

"Thanks," she says when I make my way through the gate. I shrug.

"No problem, it was kind of fun."

"Who d'ya think's gonna win?" she asks.

"It was a tie between the girl with the brown calf and the tall guy with the short calf," I reply.

Laura smiles, nodding. "That's what I thought. That's Erica's brother an' sister."

"Really?"

She nods again as we climb the bleachers to sit with Louis and Liam.

"Yep. Erica says they've been workin' with 'em every day this summer. Both of 'em wanna win. Good thing they're in different age brackets."

Louis' Point of View

"A'right, so make sure yer ready fer yer classes a few minutes early, don't leave till everythin's cleaned up," Laura says. She checks her notes one more time before looking back up at the group of about thirty teenagers, a few ten and eleven year olds scattered through the gathering. "That's all I got, so go get ready. Good luck ta everyone!"

Everyone leaves, going back to their cars and campers, getting their equipment and show clothes. Laura turns to me.

"Did that sound a'right?" she asks as we start to walk back to the camper.

"It was great, love," I answer with a smile. She smiles back, her eyes squinting in the bright sun.

Erica comes running up beside us.

"Laura, the ambassador just called in sick," she says. Laura's shoulders slump.

"What?" she asks. "How bad is it?"

"Apparently she's got the runs. That's what 'er mom said," Erica replies.

"Of course. Now we need somebody ta hand out ribbons. Thanks fer telling me," she says.

Erica nods, then jogs off.

"Well, that's jus' great," Laura says sarcastically.

"What's the problem?" I ask, not quite getting it.

"Th' ambassador's th' one that hands 'em their ribbon after th' judge goes through an' places 'em. We ain't got one fer tanight."

"Just handing out ribbons? The lads and I can do that," I suggest.

"That ain't a bad idea, actually," she agrees. "Only need one of ya though."

By now we've reached the camper, and I can hear Liam and Zayn laughing from inside.

"Sounds like they're havin' fun," Laura says with a smile as she opens the door.

After about half an hour, Zayn, Liam, and I are waiting outside the camper for Laura to get done changing her clothes for the show. We've sorted it all out, and Zayn's going to hand out the ribbons, I'll be helping Laura, and Liam is going to help Erica, like he promised.

"Hurry up Laura, I'm hungry!" Zayn says, pounding his fist on the door. We're going to go eat supper with the judge and the beef superintendents. Once Laura gets done, that is.

"Ya'll're always hungry!" she shouts back from inside. Then the door opens, and she steps out, putting her white cowboy hat on top of her head, a clipboard in her hand.

"Wow," I mutter under my breath.

"This look a'right?" she asks, spinning in a small circle. She's wearing a dark wash pair of jeans, with a red plaid shirt tucked into them, and her brown boots. She's braided her hair so that it falls over her right shoulder, a few strands falling out of the otherwise neat plait.

I nod when she looks up at me, waiting for my answer.

"A'righty then, let's go eat," she says, hooking her arms through mine and Liam's, pulling us up the driveway toward the large open show barn. The lads and I are dressed similarly to Laura, the color of our shirts being the only difference. That and the fact that Liam's hat is black instead of white.

"Evenin'," she says, reaching out to shake the man - who must be the judge - 's hand.

He returns the greeting, and soon we're all seated around the picnic table, eating our dinners out of the styrofoam containers from the kitchen.

Laura and the judge talk, saying things about how they both grew up around here, and asking each other what sort of animals they've shown before.

After a while, everyone is finished, and we all walk over to the show barn, where everyone is gathering. Laura introduces the judge to the clerks, then tells Zayn what to do as Liam wanders off to find Erica. Then I follow Laura as she walks back to the beef barn, which is full of people.

Some are dressed in plaid shirts and jeans, long sticks in their hands as they stand at the edge of the pens, waiting. Others, mostly parents, are rushing around nervously, possibly more nervous than the kids.

"This oughta be fun," Laura says. She clears her throat. "A'right! I need all my seniors down at th' gate in five minutes, Juniors're on deck," she calls, and immediately people start moving, the oldest of the kids untying their calves and leading them down the aisles toward the show barn.

"Lulu?" Hanna asks, walking up beside her.

"What?"

"Could you braid my hair? Mama's busy, an' she said to ask you,"

Laura smiles. "Sure sugar, but I gotta go out there. Is yer mama a'right with that?"

Hanna nods. "I asked 'er already. She said I could go with you."

Laura nods. then turns to me. "You okay with takin' 'er out there while I make sure ev'ryone's ready?"

"I can take her," I reply automatically.

Laura smiles her thanks, then tells Hanna, "you go with Louis, I'll be out there soon 's 'm done in here. Be good."

Hanna nods, then turns to me, looking up at me with her bright blue eyes.

"Well, let's go then," I say, holding my hand out for her to slide her smaller one into. Once she does, I start walking, hearing Laura's voice yelling out the last call for the seniors.

Laura's Point of View

I close the gate after the last exhibitor walks their calf into the ring, then give the nod to the clerk to say that this is the whole class.

"Lulu!" Hanna calls from her spot on the fence.

I smile.

" 'm comin'."

I walk over to where she is, combing my fingers through her soft hair as I watch the class in the ring.

"So what do they have to do?" Louis asks from his spot next to Hanna.

"This 's showmanship, so they gotta show they've worked with th' calf, an' th' judge places 'em based on how well they work together, how th' calf is groomed, an' whether or not the calf acts up," I reply, sectioning off some hair to start braiding.

"That sound hard," Louis muses.

"It ain't hard once ya get th' hang of it," I tell him, starting to braid Hanna's hair, making sure it isn't too tight. Hanna doesn't like tight braids. They tug on her face too much, she says.

I've gone through that gate plenty of times, sometimes coming back out first, sometimes last. The placing weren't so much a matter of winning or losing to me, they were a marker of how much I had worked with my animal, how much time and effort I'd put into getting them to stand quiet, and follow without much complaint.

When I spent time every day with my animal, they worked better with me. The same was true for the opposite. The ribbons weren't really a show of how well I did in the ring, but of how much hard work I put into the project over time.

"And... done," I say, tying a small bow with the ribbon Hanna hands me.

"Thanks Lulu!" she says with a smile, hopping off of the fence.

"Where're you goin'?" I ask.

"Back to the barn. I gotta get ready fer my turn!" she says.

"Not 'lone, you ain't." I look at Louis. "Can you take 'er back please? I gotta stay here."

He nods, getting down off of the fence and reaching over for Hanna's hand.

"And..." I start, waiting for him to look at me, "could ya call fer th' juniors? Tell 'em they're up next?"

He nods again, and then he and Hanna are walking back to the barn. A few feet away from me, Hanna tugs on his hand, making him stop. She tells him something, and he nods, crouching down so she can climb onto his shoulders.

I smile as he starts walking again, Hanna giggling from her spot. Sneaky little thing, she is.

We get into a routine, where I tell Louis which group to call up next, and he goes back to the barn while I stay up where the show is going on, making sure everyone is there before the classes start.

Zayn walks out after the judge places the class, handing the exhibitors their ribbons with a congratulations, more often than not getting a blushing smile in return. I don't blame them, he is pretty nice to look at.

Before long, it's down to the championship drive, where all the first and second placed calves from each of the market classes come back out for the judge to pick the overall winner and runner up.

Erica's sister Megan is in the running this year, her calf being the first in the middle heavyweight market class. There's another couple kids from my club, and more from different clubs, totaling about eight kid-calf pairs.

"What's the difference between the weight classes?" Louis asks.

"Y'know how when there's wrestlers, they fight in a weight class?" He nods. "They split 'em up so that it's easier fer th' judge ta pick the best outta one class, then they bring 'em all together so he can pick th' favorite out of 'is favorites. That way they ain't puttin' a skinny calf against one with a little more muscle."

I watch anxiously as the judge walks up and down the line of calves, looking them over critically.

After what feels like forever, he walks up to Megan's calf, giving it a slap on the rump. The people filling the bleachers cheer.

"What's up with that?" Louis asks.

"She jus' won!" I exclaim.

Megan grins as she shakes the judge's hand, looking toward her mom as she takes a picture.

"Well, this was a good night fer us," Kyle says, leaning against the gate of his steer's pen. Now that the feeder calf show is over, it's time for the beef show, with the bigger steers, to start.

"It has been," I agree. "A grand champion, two showmanship winners, an' not a single calf not placed in market. Might be th' best year yet."

"Now we jus' gotta keep it goin'," he says with a grin.

"Yep. It's all on you now."

He nods.

"You want me ta watch this year?" I ask. Between the two of us, we've always had a sort of good-luck thing. If Kyle thinks he'll do better without the pressure of me watching, I'll stay back in the barn and wait until he gets back, but if he feels like I should be out there, then I sit out in the bleachers with Jeremy.

"Yeah," he replies. "That way I don't haveta tell ya when I win."

Louis' Point of View

I walk down the barn aisle, looking for Laura. When I spot her, she's on the other side of the barn, talking to Kyle.

She laughs at something he says, then punches his arm. He grins, his face turning red, and pulls her into a hug. I almost miss the way his face lights up when she turns to the side, kissing his cheek, before pulling away and saying something determinedly.

He smiles, his face even redder than before, and she walks away, waving.

By the time Laura gets to where I'm at, Kyle's come to his senses enough to start moving, getting his steer up and brushing the shavings off of it.

"Hey," Laura greets when she sees me.

"Hey," I reply. "What was that?"

"What?" she questions as she looks over at me.

"That, with Kyle."

"Oh, that. Wishin' 'im good luck," she answers. "Why?"

I shrug. "Curious."

I sit up in the stands with Laura, watching as Erica leads her steer along in the lineup. Laura keeps muttering things, some of them in a language I still can't understand.

"What are you saying?" I ask finally, once I can't stand it anymore.

"Hmm?" She turns to look at me, her eyes wide as if she's just been caught.

"What are you saying?" I ask again

"She needs 'ta pick 'is head up, she's lettin' it get lower an' lower th' more they go 'round," Laura tells me, nodding toward a girl who's struggling to get her steer to walk in a straight line..

I nod, turning back to watch, but apparently Laura wasn't done.

"An' that one, with th' red steer, he ain't worked with it fer more'n a week, tops, all summer."

The rest of the night continues like that, Laura saying things that each of the kids needs to work on, or things that she notices they're doing particularly well.

By the time I finally crash onto the bed that night, Kyle and Erica both have new trophies, and the sky is so dark I can't tell if my eyes are open or closed.


	37. Chapter 37

Louis’ Point of View

“Go get cleaned up, dinner’s in an hour,” Laura tells the two youngest Dillons. We’ve just come back from washing the animals again, making sure they’re clean for the auction later tonight. 

Yesterday, which was Wednesday, seems like it went so fast, I barely remember any of it. There was the parade in the morning and early afternoon, then helping Laura move ribbons again for the different shows, and by the time we ate supper, I was exhausted. Then Hanna and Johnny stayed in the camper with us, taking up more space than Laura and I did in the big bed. Both of the kids ended up on top of Laura somehow, Johnny’s feet in my face.

“What are we eating?” Zayn asks.

“Steak and potatoes,” Laura replies, “an’ whatever else people bring.”

“There’s gonna be other people?” I ask. 

Laura nods, pulling a bowl from under the sink. “Yep. Always have a club dinner on auction night.”

Soon there are people knocking on the door, and sitting outside the camper in chairs and at the picnic table that we brought over, and when the timer goes off, we head outside and eat with everyone.

Zayn and I sit with the Dillons, and Laura joins us after a bit, all of us laughing and talking. Liam sits over by Erica, and gets introduced to her parents. They seem to like the lad well enough, smiling at him as he takes his seat. 

Laura ends up with Hanna sitting on her lap, finishing her food while the older girl braids her hair. 

“So what’s your calf’s name again?” I ask. 

“Rufus,” Hanna replies with a smile. 

“It’s always Rufus,” Jeremy says. “You’d think she liked th’ name or somethin’.”

“Wait a second,” Laura says, “ain’t there a Rufus in yer class at school?”

Hanna’s face gets a little pinker, and she shakes her head. “No, there ain’t no Rufus in my class,” she says quickly.

“Are you sure?” Jeremy asks. “Cause that one boy that you was talkin’ to th’ last day ‘o school, I thought his name was Rufus.”

“No… That was… not Rufus.”

“That was ‘is name?” Laura asks with a fond smile. 

“Yeah,” Hanna says. 

“Don’t ‘e got a brother?” Jeremy asks. 

Hanna nods.

“What’s ‘is brother’s name?” 

“James,” Hanna says. 

“But James’ got a brother named Rufus!” Jeremy exclaims.

The two friends keep teasing Hanna, going back and forth until everyone has to head up to the barn to get their animals ready.

“You sure ‘is name ain’t Rufus?” Laura asks as Hanna climbs onto her brother’s shoulders so they can walk up to the barn. 

“Yes, Lulu! I’m sure!” Hanna giggles.

Zayn’s Point of View

“Hey,” Laura says, motioning for me to come closer to her. 

“What?”

“You see that heifer right there?” she asks. I look in the direction she’s pointing. 

A brown heifer, with four white socks and a black tail. 

I nod. “What about her?”

“I want it.” She hands me a bidding card. “Yer gonna buy ‘er.”

I raise an eyebrow, turning the card over in my hand. There’s a large  **37**  written in sharpie on both sides.

“It’s comin’ from my money, all you gotta do is hold th’ card up. I’ll be somewhere around, but I can’t bid on stuff ‘cause I’m waitin’ with th’ kids,” Laura explains. 

I nod again. “Alright… is there a limit on how much you’ll pay?”

Laura shakes her head. “No, go high as ya need to. I want that’n.”

“Why that one?” I ask. The heifer doesn’t seem too special.

“Look at ‘er. Nice an’ quiet, good temper, she’s got a good build. Oughta put out nice calves.”

That makes sense. 

“You got it?” she asks. I nod. 

“Yeah, I’ll go sit up with Liam.” He’s got one of Laura’s lists of all the kids and he’s supposed to record how much each calf brings per pound. 

“Good. See ya later then,” Laura replies with a smile. 

“See ya.” 

I walk out to where the auction ring is, inside another one of the huge buildings, and quickly find Liam, then climb the bleachers to sit by him. 

“Where’s Louis?” he asks. 

“I think he’s with Laura,” I reply. 

“He’s always with Laura,” Liam mutters. “Darn Lola.”

“ _Lola_?” I ask, confused.

“Yeah. Lola. _Lo_ -uis and  _La_ -ura. Like, putting their names together?” he tries to explain. 

I look at him for a second, then we both start laughing. 

“Did you come up with that yourself?”

Laura’s Point of View

“And sold!” 

“A’right, next,” I call, swinging the gate open for the next kid to lead their calf through. I give the girl a smile as she walks past me, then close the gate behind her after she’s through. 

“Who’s next?” Louis asks, practically yelling as the auctioneer starts in with his thing. 

I hand him the list. “This group ‘s th’ next one. You can wait a couple people ‘fore ya go back,” I tell him. 

He’s been doing most of the running for me, going back to the beef barn to call the names of the kids that are next in the auction ring. He’s pretty good at it too, not one kid has been late or missing. 

“How much are they getting for them?” he asks.

“It’s been ‘round a dollar fifty a pound,” I reply. The prices are really good this year, usually they’re fighting to get to a dollar per pound. 

From where I’m standing at the gate, I can see where Liam and Zayn are sitting, and I’m pretty sure they can see me. 

There’s a small alleyway that leads around the barns, running down the outside of the ends of them, that connects to the pen that the kids lead their animals into so they can be sold. They come through the barn to go into the ring, then when they’re finished, they walk out the other gate and down the alleyway until they get to where their calf’s pen is. 

Right now we’re about halfway through the feeder calves, which were the third species to be sold, after the market goats and sheep. 

“Sold!”

I swing the gate open, and the brown heifer walks through. I look up at Zayn, pointing to the heifer. He gets what I’m trying to say, and nods, holding up the card. 

“You can go get th’ next ones please,” I tell Louis. He nods, walking back through the barn. 

After the last calf is sold, I walk back to the beef barn with Louis, looking for Hanna and Johnny. I said I would watch them until the auction was over, so that they would be out of Jeremy and Kyle’s way. About halfway there, I hear rain start pounding on the tin roof of the barn. 

“Well, looks like the annual monsoon is here,” Jeremy says as he walks up, Hanna and Johnny behind him. “Think you two can stay outta th’ rain?” he asks them. 

“Yeah, we’ll stay inside…” Johnny says disappointedly. He likes to play in the rain. A lot. It’s not something his mother encourages, but it’s one of his favorite things to do. 

“Good. You be good fer Laura.”

“Yes sir!” Hanna says, mock saluting her older brother. She walks over to Louis, tugging at his hand. 

“Shouldn’t be too long,” Jeremy tells me. “Only ‘bout twenty people’re in front of us.”

I nod, smiling as Hanna climbs onto Louis’ shoulders, tugging on his hair. 

“Lulu!” Johnny calls. 

“What?” I ask, looking down at him. 

“Can I have a piggyback ride?”

I sigh, looking over at Louis. 

“See what ya started?”

Louis’ Point of View

Laura and I take Hanna and Johnny up into the bleachers, sitting across the ring from Liam and Zayn, watching the rest of the auction. 

Hanna sits on my lap, excitedly pointing out all the animals that she thinks are nice looking, while Johnny sits next to Laura, talking about how he wants a truck like his brothers’ when he gets older. 

“Looky that one!” Hanna says, pointing at the spotted pig that’s just come into the auction ring. 

“What about it?” I ask. 

“It’s all spotty!” she says excitedly. “It’s pretty!”

“Really? What if it had stripes?” I question.

“What? Pigs don’t have stripes,” Hanna says, looking at me confusedly. 

“What about that one a little while ago with the big white stripe?” I ask. “That one doesn’t count?”

She shakes her head. “No, it just had one stripe. Like a belt. Not stripe- _sss_ , silly.”

“So why did that one have a stripe, but those ones have spots?” I ask. 

“Cause they’re different breeds. The spotted ones’re Spotted, an’ the stripey one is…” Hanna frowns, trying to think of the name. When she can’t remember, she taps Laura on the shoulder. “Lulu, what kind is it when they have a stripe?” she asks.

“What’re ya talkin’ bout?” Laura asks. 

“Pigs. What ones have the white stripe?”

“Hampshire,” Laura answers. 

“They’s Hampshires,” Hanna tells me. 

“Really?”

“Sold!” comes the loud shout from the auctioneer. “Thank you folks, for comin’ out tonight, have a safe trip home, make sure you check out before you leave!”

Everyone starts getting up and making their way out through the rain to their cars. 

“Is that it?” I ask Laura. She nods. 

“Yep. Jus’ gotta find Jeremy, an’ then we can head back ta th’ camper.”

It wasn’t hard to find Jeremy and Kyle, but it took a little longer to find Liam and Zayn in the crowd. Once we’re all together, we start off into the rain. 

A low rumble of thunder sounds in the distance, and I feel a chill creep up my spine. I’ve never been a fan of thunderstorms, or even just plain rain for that matter. 

“Hey, you a’right?” Laura asks. “Yer white as a sheet.”

I nod. “Yeah, I’m fine.” 

She gives me a look, but doesn’t say anything else. 

We split off from the Dillons when we get to the camper, going inside. Zayn immediately flops down on the couch, kicking his shoes off before pulling a blanket over himself and going to sleep. Liam tugs his shoes off, then crawls onto his pile of cushions as Laura and I walk up the small set of steps to the upper part of the camper. 

“You sure yer a’right?” Laura asks, sitting on the edge of the bed to pull her boots off. 

“Yeah, I’m fine.” 

She looks at me for a second. 

“Bullshit. What’s wrong?”

Damn. She’s like my mum. Sees right through me. 

“I don’t like storms,” I say quietly. 

“Really?” 

“Yeah,” I admit, looking down at my feet. 

“You do know that yer perfectly fine, right?” she asks. “Like, nothin’s gonna get ya ‘r anythin’.”

“Yeah, I just… I don’t like them,” I tell her. I kick my boots off, then crawl under the covers. 

Laura doesn’t say anything else, going into the small bathroom and coming back out a few minutes later in a pair of shorts and a t shirt. She crawls into bed, moving the pillows around before laying down, setting her phone on the nightstand and shutting the light off.

There’s another low rumble of thunder, this one closer than the last one, and I jump a little. I feel arms wrap around me, and then Laura’s right behind me, pressed up against my back, her head resting on the back of my shoulder.

“Nani says that there’s men that live in th’ sky, an’ they’re th’ ones that make thunder na’ lightnin’,” she says quietly. “They’ve got great big wings, an’ they fly around whenever there’s a storm. That’s what makes th’ ayvdaqualosgv.”

“The what?” I ask.

“A-yv-da-qua-los-gv. Thunder,” Laura replies. 

“Is this some slumber party that I wasn’t invited to?” I hear Zayn’s voice say. Shit. I know how this is going to look, and that’s not what it is.

“Sleepy Laura likes cuddles,” Laura mumbles, burying her face in my back. “Louis being grumpy.”

“Well, it would help if you’d let me turn around,” I say, playing along. 

“What does Zayn want?” Laura asks with a yawn, moving so that I can turn to face her.

“Well, I can’t sleep, I thought maybe there was room for another up here?”

Laura pulls back the blankets. 

“Join us, galilahi,” she mumbles. 

“What does  _that_  mean?” I ask as Zayn climbs under the covers. She’s been calling him that since her grandparents came over.

“Attractive.”

“What?”

“Hey, Nani started it!”

“Sure…” I say.

“Well, Zayn is pretty,” Laura says quietly. 

“You’re pretty,” Zayn tells her. 

“I was gonna say that,” I whine. 

“Pretty boys say ’m pretty,” Laura giggles. 

“Oh, so now  _I’m_  pretty too?” I ask. 

“Well, I dunno if  _pretty_  is th’ right word…” Laura amends, looking at me. She frowns a bit, as if trying to think of something else, then says, “nope, I got nothin’.”

She looks around for a second. 

“There’s somethin’ missin’...”

“Well…” Zayn starts.

“Liam!” Laura calls. 

“What?” he answers.

“Y’wanna come up here too? There’s room fer ‘nother!”

“Laaaauuraaaa,” I whine. Now it’s gonna get all hot up in here, and not the good kind. 

“Hush it, you’ll be fine,” Laura says, tugging on my hair as Liam comes up the steps. 

“Where do I go?” he asks, looking at the three of us. 

I move closer to Laura, wrapping my arms around her and making room for Liam to get in on my other side. 

“My Laura,” I grumble.

“Alright mate, take it easy,” Zayn laughs. 

“Laura sleepy,” Laura mumbles, burrowing further into her pillow. “Pretty boys be quiet. Let Laura sleep.”

“What?” Liam asks, not having been in on the conversation earlier. 

“Sleep yancy,” Laura groans. “Tamara’s gonna come too soon as it is.”

Everyone gets really quiet, all of us trying to fall asleep, and there’s a loud boom of thunder. I flinch, and even though it was barely noticeable, Laura moves one hand up to my hair, running her fingers through it and mumbling something in Cherokee. I have no clue what it is or what it means, but I feel myself calming down almost instantly, my eyes closing.


	38. Chapter 38

Laura's Point of View

"Hey, get offa me," I groan. Last night was a little cooler than usual, and Louis somehow ended up on top of me sometime during the night. I don't mind, mostly because I was asleep, but now he won't get off.

"Mmm-mm," He protests.

"Louis, I haveta pee," I whine.

"Your problem, not mine," he says.

"It'll be yer problem iff'n ya make me wait too much longer," I warn him.

"I don't wanna get up."

"Ya don't haveta, jus' let  _me_  get up!"

"Ugh, fine," he groans, rolling off of me. I jump up, darting over to my bag to grab a change of clothes, nearly dumping it out onto the floor when I realize I don't have a clean shirt to wear today.

"Hey Loooouis?"

"What?"

"Can I borrow a shirt?"

"What?" He sits up, scrubbing at his eyes with his hands.

"Can I borrow a shirt? Mine're all dirty. I'll wash it 'fore I give it back."

"I... guess..." He reaches into his bag on the side of the bed and pulls out a shirt, smelling it before tossing it to me. "Not dirty."

"Thank you," I say, going into the bathroom.

After I've sucessfully not wet my pants, I wash my face and pull my hair into a braid, then change my clothes. The shirt's a little big, but when I roll the sleeves and tuck the front in, it looks just fine.

I walk down the steps and over to the fridge, pulling out two foil thingys of PopTarts, taking them both with me when I go back up the steps.

I toss one of the PopTart packs at Louis, who's still under the blankets.

"C'mon, get up. We got stuff ta do," I tell him.

"Nooo... sleeeep..." he replies, reaching out for the PopTarts and pulling them under the blanket. I hear the wrapper crinkling, and shake my head.

"You gettin' crumbs on th' sheets?"

The crinkling immediately stops.

"No..."

"Louis!"

The blanket is lifted up off the side of the bed, and I see his hand move out, swiping the crumbs off of the bed.

"There aren't any now..."

"There better not be. I don't wanna haveta wash th' sheets."

Louis' Point of View

After the last gate is put onto the trailer, I run the back of my hand over my forehead, wiping some of the sweat off.

We're finally done.

I look for Laura, and find her standing not too far away, talking to Rob. I can't see her expression, but from the way she's nodding enthusiastically, I assume he's saying something she wants to hear.

She nods one more time, they say goodbye, and Rob turns and walks over to his truck. Laura stands there, looking around for a bit.

"So what was that about?" I ask, walking up next to her. She jumps at my voice.

"Don't do that," she says with a smile.

"Noted. What was that?" I ask.

Her smile gets wider. She looks as if she's about to burst from being so happy.

"Rob asked me iff'n I wanted ta help 'im with somethin'," she says.

"Like what?"

She shrugs. "I dunno. Said 'e needs  _me_  ta help 'im though. Like, needs  _me_. Not Ashley."

I nod. I can see why she's so excited.

"Do you know what you're gonna help with?"

She shakes her head. "Naw, but 'e said 'e'd text me later."

From the look on her face, I'd wager that Rob's never texted her before.

A few hours later, we're back in the camper, taking naps.

Hey, it's been a long morning. We're all tired. And we stayed up pretty late last night helping with the haul out.

All the animals that were sold had to get loaded onto trailers and taken to their new homes, and that made for a very loud and unorganized beef barn last night.

At least the noise kept me awake. All night. Hence not wanting to wake up this morning.

But now that I've got time to sleep, I can't seem to relax. So I'm thinking, hoping that it'll bore me enough that I'll fall asleep.

Laura said there was a dance later tonight, and a bonfire afterward, and that we could go if we wanted. I was thinking maybe I'd stay in the camper and catch up on some sleep, but the way Laura and Erica were talking about it, it sounds like it would be fun.

Needless to say, I still haven't made up my mind about it.

3rd Person Point of View

Later that night, after it's dark out, the grassy parking lot at the fairgrounds is dotted with at least half a dozen bonfires, each of them surrounded by circles of laughing and talking friends. The dance is long over, but there are a few random groups of people hanging around the few pickup trucks that are playing music from the local country station.

Laura sits on a hay bale, between Louis and Zayn, talking across the fire to Erica about how next year they were going to do even better with the shows, and how she plans to have more group practice sessions with the calves to get them used to being around others.

Zayn's nearly asleep, the warmth of the fire in front of him and the girl next to him gently lulling him toward dreaming. He's had a long week, they all have, and is ready for a long weekend of sleeping in.

Louis, on the other hand, is wide awake. He never did fall asleep earlier that afternoon, and he's pretty sure he should be worn out, ready to crash, but instead he can't seem to stay still, full of energy.

So when Laura jumps up to go dance by one of the trucks, Louis doesn't hesitate to follow her when she looks back at him, a movement not unnoticed by the guy sitting in the circle adjacent to theirs.

It's not that Rob doesn't like Laura, he does. She's a nice girl. Pretty too. But when he sees her wearing some other guy's shirt, he takes that as another reason not to get into anything with her. To him, it's like the guy is staking a claim on her, silently telling him to back off. Whether it was intentional or not, Rob doesn't know. But she always seems to stick around the guy with the blue eyes, maybe they're closer than Rob thought.

They're close now, talking to each other as they sway back and forth to the beat of the music. Rob swears he can see Laura's face light up when he talks to her, as if she can't wait to hear his voice.

"Hey, are you alright?" Ashley asks from beside him.

Rob shakes his head, clearing his thoughts.

"Yeah, I'm good. Why?"

Ashley looks at him, raising an eyebrow.

"You've been looking over there for about five minutes, I was just curious," she says quietly.

Not wanting to make it seem like he was staring at just Laura, because he obviously wasn't, Rob asks, "who is that guy?"

"Who? The one with Laura?" Ashley replies, leaning closer to Rob as if that will help her see the guy better.

"Yeah, that one."

"His name's Louis. He works on the ranch. Ann says he's pretty funny," Ashley tells Rob.

Funny. That's something Laura's always liked, a guy who's funny. Not that Rob can't crack a joke or two once in awhile, but he considers himself more the quiet, serious type.

"They're pretty close, from what I hear," Ashley adds, keeping her statement vague, knowing that Rob will ask her to explain.

"What do you mean, close?"

"I heard they were sharing a bed all week," Ashley says quietly, as if she doesn't want the rest of the people around them to hear. Not that it matters, it's just her brother and Rob's sisters sitting around the blazing fire. As she says it, she leans even closer to Rob, close enough that he can feel the slight heat radiating from her thin body.

He's always thought that Ashley was rather skinny, considering how tall she was. At one point when they were in high school, he had thought that she looked like she had been stretched, all long awkward limbs and skinny torso. She's grown into herself since then, but she's got a little ways to go.

"Really?" Rob asks, glancing over at the two, who are now laughing at something one of them said. He didn't take Laura for the type of girl who would just sleep with a random guy she's barely known for a month. Maybe he was wrong about her...

Or maybe she likes this guy Louis. Maybe that's what she's doing.

"Yeah. Wonder why that other guy looks so tired," Ashley says casually, nodding toward Zayn.

Rob looks over to see the black haired guy leaning on his friend's shoulder, yawning. What would keep him up at night? The other guy who stayed with them doesn't look half as tired. But he's been with Erica all week. Who knows if he actually slept in the same camper as Laura and Louis and Zayn. What were they doing?

"But I'm not tired," Zayn says as he yawns yet again.

"Mate, you're gonna fall asleep," Liam replies. "You should head in for the night, get some sleep."

"I can wait, it's okay," Zayn grumbles. He doesn't want to miss anything. All the fun stuff always happens when he's asleep. Not this time. He's staying awake for this.

So far all he's seen is Laura going over to dance, and Louis going with her. Not super exciting.

"Lola," he mutters.

"What?" Liam asks, turning from his conversation with Erica.

"Lola. Over there," Zayn repeats, nodding toward where Louis and Laura are standing close together, looking at something in Laura's hand.

"That does look.... suspicious," Erica muses. "We should check it out."

"Hey, watch this," Laura says. She crouches down, pulling up a blade of grass before standing up again. She puts it between her thumbs, and blows through the small gap, creating a loud squeaky sound.

"How'd you do that?" Louis asks, stepping closer to look at how she put the blade of grass in her hand.

"It ain't too hard," Laura explains, showing him how it works. Soon both of them are making loud squeaks and laughing over the face the other makes.

A good end to a good week, Laura thinks to herself.


	39. Chapter 39

Louis’ Point of View

Sunday night, after we’ve all slept for most of the day, Laura asks if we want to go watch the volleyball practice. The lads and I look at each other, and then nod. It sounds like it would be fun to watch.

Moments later, we’re all stuffed into Laura’s truck, rolling down the road. Laura, who’s in her usual shorts and cuttoff shirt, her hair pulled back in a thick braid. Her feet are encased in a pair of short boots, her long legs seeming even longer than usual.

She’s got the radio on, playing Ironman. Something about getting pumped up before practice.

When we get to the high school, she shuts the truck off, and we climb out.  

“Alright, keep yer hands to yerselves an’ don’t say nothin’ ‘bout Sue’s eye.”

We walk through the doors of the high school, into the cool, dark hallway. There’s just enough light filtering through the windows of the classrooms that line the hall for me to be able to tell where I’m going. Laura doesn’t seem to need the light to know where to go, as she’s walking quickly down the long hallway.

I hear music, faint music, coming from somewhere. That seems to be where we’re going, because it’s slowly getting louder.

I see dark shadows lining the lower parts of the walls in the stretch of hallway in front of us. As I get closer, the bulky shapes become better defined in the dim light.

By the time we’re weaving through the football players, they’ve noticed Laura, and are trying to get her to talk to them.

One tries to trip her, but she avoids the obstacle of his leg without breaking her stride or looking down. She just keeps walking, completely ignoring their attempts until…

“Hey, those are some nice legs. What time do they open?”

She doesn’t stop walking, she just turns her head a bit to the side that the question came from, says, “past yer bedtime,” and turns the corner to go down the next hall.

As we follow her, I can hear the other guys oooohing at the obvious diss.

The jeering fades, and the music continues to get louder, until we’re right outside what I assume is the gymnasium.

The sound of a loud pop song, along with what sounds like girl's laughter, pours out the open door that Laura walks through. The lads and I follow her, blinking in the sudden bright light.

Laura walks to the edge of the bleachers, setting her bag down by the rest of the team’s gear before kicking her boots off and sitting down on the floor.

“You can sit, ya know,” she tells us, nodding toward the bleachers. She starts rummaging around in her bag, and we sit down on the lowest row of bleachers, close to Laura.

She pulls out a pair of black and gray shoes, knee pads, and a roll of athletic tape just as another person walks up.

“Laura, you’re late,” he says, making her look up. He must be the coach.

“I know, ‘m sorry. Got goin’ a lil later ‘n usual.”

He kneels down in front of her, pulling her foot on top of his knee. Laura hands him the tape and he begins taping her ankle.

“So you know what this means?” he asks.

“Yessir. Five laps.” Five laps for being late? I know she can handle it, but what? They have to run if they’re late? Why didn’t she tell us? I know I would have gotten around faster.

“Is your ankle doing better?” he asks, setting her foot back on the ground and handing the tape back.

“Yessir. Feels solid again.”

“Good,” he grins, “I’d hate it if my captain couldn’t play through the first game of the season.” He stands, looking over at the other players as Laura pulls on her knee pads, then laces up her shoes.

“Are these the ones who wanted to watch?” he asks, looking at us. We nod at the same time that Laura says, “Yessir.”

He extends his hand out to us, saying, “I’m Rafael, the coach.”

We introduce ourselves, shaking his hand.

“So how do you know Laura?” he asks as Laura jogs around the gym.

“We’re friends,” Liam answers.

“So if you’re friends, has she told you how well she plays?”

“No, she doesn’t really talk about herself. Just said that she plays volleyball,” Niall says.

“Well, then I’m going to tell you, because she won’t. You’ll probably see it in a few minutes, but she’s an amazing volleyball player.”

“Really?” Harry asks.

Rafael nods. “Best blocker in the Tri-County League, best hitter and server on the team, and the best captain I’ve coached.”

She’s never told us that. I wonder why.

“She’s the best player I’ve got,” he proudly adds.

With that, he walks away, going down a small hallway.

I go back to watching Laura, who’s on her fourth lap around the gym. She doesn’t even look tired, and she’s been staying at a steady jog the whole time. I guess running every morning pays off.

When she finishes, she stops at her bag, pulling out a bottle of Red Gatorade and taking a few big gulps before wiping her face with a towel from her bag.

“Hey Laura!” Erica says as she walks up.

“Hey,” Laura answers. “How ya been?”

“Alright. Got that new seat cover for my truck.”

Does everyone out here drive a pickup truck?

“That’s good.”

Rafael blows the whistle, and the two girls walk over to join the rest of the team.

They talk for a moment, then split up, half of them going on either side of the net.

The way that they stand, there’s four players on the inside of the court on both sides, one standing in the front, closest to the net, and three lined up on the back half of the court.

The rest of the players on each side form a line coming off the right side of the courts.

“Alright, setting the ball over to start,” Rafael says, throwing a volleyball onto the court, the side that Laura’s on.

A blonde girl in the back steps forward, passing the ball by hitting it off of her forearms. Another blonde, this one in the front row, steps under the ball, pushing it up high in the air with her hands. Then Laura gets under the ball, pushing it over the net.

“Rotate!” Laura calls, and the girls rotate clockwise around the court, one new girl stepping onto the court as another steps off.

The girls on the other side hit the ball three times, the third hit sending the ball back over the net.

This time Laura takes the first hit, passing it to the girl in the front row. The ball is pushed up again, then sent over the net.

“Rotate!” Laura calls again, and this time she steps into the front row.

When the ball comes back, she calls, “right here,” to let the girl who passes it know where she is. The pass goes right to her, though it’s really close to the net.

Instead of pushing it up into the air, Laura does a little hop-thing, and taps the ball, sending it over the net and onto the ground on the other side.

“Laura…” Rafael chides with a smile.

“Sorry. Got excited,” she says with a happy smile.

“Well, try to keep it under control, and let's keep those passes on target.” He throws another ball onto the court, and they continue the drill for a good ten minutes. It’s nice to watch Laura’s face light up whenever she gets to do something. She really loves the sport, I guess.

After Rafael calls them in for a huddle, they all walk to their bags and get a drink.

“So, how ya likin’ it so far?” Laura asks.

“You’re really good,” I compliment.

“This ain’t nothin’ yet, wait’ll we really get goin’,” she replies.

“Hey, who are you?” one of the blonde girls says as she walks up.

“Georgia, this ‘s Harry, Liam, Niall, Zayn, and Louis. Guys, this ‘s Georgia Rose. She’s-”

“I’m the setter,” Georgia says proudly, flipping her ponytail over her shoulder and batting her eyes at us.

“Yeah. She’s th’ setter,” Laura mutters.

“Ladies! Let’s get back to work!” Rafael calls, and Georgia walks away, and it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that she’s adding an extra swish of her hips with each step she takes.

Laura takes one last gulp of Gatorade before following, walking the way she always does, not trying to impress anyone, but making more of an impression than the peroxide blonde girl with too much makeup on. How does she not sweat it all off?

They talk for a few moments, but I can’t hear what Rafael says due to the loud music. Then they split up into four uneven groups. Laura’s group is just her and another girl, and there’s another group of two, Georgia and another short blonde girl, and then two groups with a few girls in them.

Georgia and the other girl each grab a ball and walk over to the wall, tossing them up and setting them against the wall.

Laura stands on the court next to Erica, while one of the groups of four lines up on the left side of the other side of the net, about ten feet away from it. Rafael stands in the middle of the net, on the side with the line of girls. He tosses a ball up into the air, and the first girl in line jumps into the air, hitting the ball over the net and onto the floor of the other side of the court.

“Snap your wrist, Camryn,” he says as the girl goes to the end of the line. He tosses the next ball, and the next girl hits it.

“Less stiff, Sam.”

He says something after each girl hits the ball, coaching them on how to hit the ball better the next time. They each go through the line at least five times, then the next group goes. After about five more minutes, it’s time for Laura’s group to go.

When the two girls walk under the net to the other side, they don’t go to the edge of the court like the others. Instead they walk to the middle of the court, standing about ten feet from the net. Rafael throws a ball up into the air, and Laura leaps upward, hitting the ball lightly over the net.

“Come on Laura, I know you’ve got more than that,” Rafael says as he tosses the next ball into the air for the other girl.

“Startin’ slow, gettin’ warmed up first,” Laura says before she jumps again, hitting the ball a little harder this time.

Each time Laura swings her arm a little faster, hitting the ball a little harder, until she’s slamming the ball down onto the wooden floor. I wasn’t expecting her to be this rough on the ball. She’s literally hitting it so hard that the other girls have to jump out of the way to avoid being hit by it, because it looks like it would hurt, bad.

"That's it Laura!" Rafael shouts once she hits an especially hard one, making it go straight down onto the floor. Laura walks past the other girl, and they high five.

“Alright, everyone get a ball,” Rafael orders. Laura jumps up and down a couple times, clearly excited, before jogging to the ball cart and grabbing a red ball. Then she takes a spot next to Erica on the white line on one side of the gym.

“Ten serves apiece. Every missed serve is a suicide,” Rafael tells them. “Go!”

One by one, the girls serve the ball, taking turns. When it’s Laura’s turn, she tosses the ball up, hitting it smoothly over the net. A perfect serve. Rafael, however, isn’t satisfied.

“Again,” he says, tossing her another ball. She nods, bringing her arm back and preparing to serve again. “Laura,” he calls, breaking her concentration. She turns to look at him, sassily raising an eyebrow. “Jump.”

The irritated look leaves her face, and she smirks. “Yessir.”  

She takes a few steps back, then brings her arm back again, a look of intense concentration on her face. She takes a deep breath, then moves forward, taking two quick steps before tossing the ball high in the air, swinging her arms and leaping into the air, meeting the ball on it’s way back down and hitting it over the net, nearly bending herself in half in the air with the force of the hit. She lands, looking to Rafael. He nods, and she goes to the back of the line, which is near where the lads and I are sitting.

“What was that?” I ask in astonishment. Laura shrugs, grabbing her Gatorade and taking a couple sips.

“Jump serve. ‘t’s like a normal serve. ‘Cept yer jumpin’.”

“Do you do that all the time?” Liam asks.

She nods. “Yessir.” Then Erica comes running over, her serve complete.

“Laura, that was the best one you’ve had this season!” the shorter girl exclaims. “Can you teach me how to do that?” Laura smiles.

“Sure.”

After awhile, all the girls have gone through the line, and only two of them missed their serves, so the team only has to do two suicides, running from white line to white line. While they run, I notice that Laura doesn’t run the fastest, staying in the middle of the group.

When they come over for a drink break, I ask why.

“Don’t wear me out as much,” she replies digging her towel out of her bag and wiping her face and neck off. “Got ‘nother hour left. We ain’t even started scrimmagin’ yet.”

“So what do you usually do now?” I ask.

“Us’lly there’s ‘nother drill, then we start goin’ through th’ lineup, makin’ sure ev’ryone’s got th’ rotations down. Scrimmagin’s my favorite part.”

“Why?” I ask, curious.

“I get ta block,” she says with a grin.

“Yeah, you gotta watch her sometimes,” another girl says as she walks up. “She growls at people.”

“What?” I ask, looking at Laura, who shrugs.

“I get excited.”

“So who’s this? You got another boyfriend?” the girl asks.

Laura quickly shakes her head.   
“Naw, no boyfriend,” she replies. “This ‘s Louis.” She looks at me. “This ‘s Camryn. Don’t believe nothin’ she tells ya.”

“Aw, c’mon!” Camryn smiles. “It’s not always bad.” She turns to me. “She just doesn’t want me ta spill everything she’s said 'bout ya.”

“Cam…” Laura warns. I raise an eyebrow at her. What  _has_  she said about me?

“Oh, come on, I’m not gonna just tell him,” Camryn laughs. She walks away, turning back and mouthing ‘we’ll talk later.’

I laugh and nod, then look back at Laura, tilting my head to one side.

“It ain’t nothin’ bad,” she promises, a small smile on her face.

“It better not be,” I reply, faking a stern tone.

The whistle blows, and Laura jogs back over to the team, and soon they’re going through another drill, this one mostly dealing with passing, so the girls are bent low, getting as close to the floor as they can.

It’s kind of weird, seeing as Laura’s the tallest one of the team, and she’s probably the lowest out of all of them. Her legs are tucked underneath her as she stays on her toes, the muscles in her calves tense as she waits for the ball to come to her.

It’s now that I see a long, pink line running across the tan skin of the upper part of her right leg. It looks like a scar. Where’d it come from?

“Alright, let’s do some dives,” Rafael says. “Find a partner.”

Laura looks over at Erica, who nods immediately, and the two of them walk onto the court as the other girls clear off of it, spreading out around the white line.

“Ten touches,” Rafael tells them. The two girls nod, then take their spots, one of them on each side of the court, splitting it in half, Laura on the side closest to the lads and I.

“Ready?”

The girls nod again, and the coach tosses a ball into the air.

From then on, it’s complete chaos. One ball going this way, the next going in the completely opposite direction. Laura and Erica are both yelling, each telling the other where they are, where to hit the next ball, as they run and dive all over the court.

The object seems to be for both of them to get a hit on the ball before it hits the ground, and it doesn’t look like an easy task.

The other girls standing around the edge of the court are picking up the volleyballs as they go flying, after they hit the ground, and passing them back to the basket, making sure that Rafael doesn’t run out. They also have to count how many times both of the girls get a touch on a ball.

They’re at eight now, two left, and Laura’s starting to look tired, moving just a little slower than before.

“Here,” she calls when Erica gets to the next ball. The shorter girl can’t get a good angle on it, so the pass goes the wrong way, away from Laura.

“Yer a’right,” Laura pants after Erica groans. The next ball is tossed toward Laura, and the tall girl dives forward to make the pass, rolling out of it and scrambling to her feet to try and catch the next one as Erica jumps to hit the ball over the net.

“One more,” Camryn encourages.

The next toss is short, and Erica has to dive to get the ball up, hitting it with one arm as she uses the other to catch herself.

The ball comes flying toward Laura, just far enough to her left that she can’t make a good pass from where she’s standing.

It seems to go in slow motion as she launches herself sideways at the ball, her fist getting a solid hit that sends it over the net just before her body hits the floor with a loud thud and screech as her skin slides over the polished hardwood.

“Ten!”

Erica jogs over to Laura as the older girl pulls herself to her feet. And they high five, smiling, before walking over to get a drink.

When Laura sits down on the bleachers next to me, I can see the sweat running down her face, dripping from her hair where it’s fallen out of the braid.

“Are you alright?” I ask. She nods, taking deep breaths.

“Yeah, jus’ need a minute,” she pants. “Hate that drill.”

I look down at her leg, and my eyes widen when I see a large red floor burn down the side of her calf.

“That ain’t nothin’,” she says. “I’ve had worse.”

“Doesn’t it hurt?” I ask, reaching out to poke the reddened skin.

“Lil’ bit. Nothin’ some lotion ain’t gonna fix,” she replies, taking a drink of her gatorade.

The rest of the team takes their turns, each of them pairing up with another for the drill. Camryn partners up with a blonde girl, the one who was with Laura when they were doing hitting lines.

“That’s Zoe,” Laura explains. “She’s th’ other middle.”

So that’s why they call it middle. They’re in the middle of the net. That makes sense.

Zoe doesn’t seem to be quite as quick on her feet as Laura, but other than that, they’re about the same in their ability, from what I’ve seen. 

Laura stays next to me as the rest of the team goes through the drill, telling me what the girl's names are and what position they play. I learn that Georgia has a sister, Vanessa, and that they both only date guys who were football stars, and that Zoe and Camryn are practically attached at the hip.

There's another taller girl, who Laura tells me is named Elle, that seems like she could do some serious damage on the court if she just had the confidence to do it. Two others, Sam and Sue, are both going to the same college, and living in the same dorm, and taking the same classes. Their boyfriends are brothers, but Sue's is really the only one who comes to support her at the games. Sam's boyfriend is too busy at the gym. Sue also has a black eye, but Laura didn't tell me where it came from. 

Before long, they’ve all gone through the drill, and are walking back onto the court, splitting into teams.

“I want the starters on this side,” Rafe starts, motioning to the side of the net opposite the lads and I. “And everyone else over here.”

“Who d’you want startin’?” Laura asks, motioning between herself and Zoe.

“We’ll start with Laura, and see how that works,” Rafe replies. Zoe nods, then takes her place opposite Laura, the net between them. They talk back and forth while their coach tells the other girls where they’re going to stand, and I hear Laura tell Zoe that the lads and I are there with her, to which Zoe raises an eyebrow, and Laura shakes her head, saying ‘not like that.’

“Alright, Vanessa, you have first serve. Play it until the ball hits the floor,” Rafe says, tossing the ball to the white-blonde girl standing on the white line on Laura’s side.

“Serve,” the girl says loudly, her voice high and pitchy. She draws her arm back, tossing the ball into the air before hitting it over the net.

Immediately Laura goes into action, following the ball as it moves, staying with it by moving back and forth across the net, watching and waiting.

“Here!” Zoe calls to the girl next her when she gets the ball. The girl passes the ball In front of Zoe, who takes three quick steps before jumping, swinging, and hitting the ball…

Straight into Laura’s hands, where it bounces off, and onto the floor.

“What the heck?” Zoe exclaims. “You were way over there!”

Laura just grins, telling her that it was a good hit.

They keep going for about another half hour, then they take down the nets, gathering in a circle once they’re finished.

“Somebody smells like man,” one of the girls says. Camryn looks at Laura, who puts her hands up.

“It ain’t me, I stink like horse, not man,” she defends.

“It’s probably me,” another girl says, pulling something from her bag. “New deodorant.” She holds it out for the other girls to smell.

“Yep, that’s it.”

Tuesday is a gloomy day. We move a few herds from one pen to the next, finishing up what we couldn’t move on Monday, and just as we’re putting the horses back in the stables, the rain starts pouring down.

After the horses are in their stalls, the lads and I sit on some hay bales, ready to wait out the rain before we go back inside.

“What’re ya’ll doin’?” Laura asks.

“Waiting for the rain to stop,” Harry replies, as if she should have realized that already.

“Why?” she asks.

“Because it’s raining,” I say, putting emphasis on raining.

“What’s so bad about it?” she asks, stepping over to the doorway of the barn, sticking her arm out into the rain. Yankee trots up next to her, looking up at her with his tongue sticking out.

Laura looks down at the big dog, a mischievous grin on her face, then runs outside, Yankee right behind her.  

I stand up to look out the doorway, the other lads doing the same, as Laura’s laughter fills the air.

She’s running around, Yankee chasing her, getting completely soaked, but looking so happy, her smile wide as she dodges and weaves, laughing as Yankee barks at her.

“C’mon!” she says, waving for us to join her. Liam and Harry go first, stepping out into the rain and running after Yankee without looking back. The big dog barks excitedly at the new people to chase, jumping at them as his tail swings back and forth.

Niall goes next, jumping on Liam’s back and nearly taking him down onto the wet grass, but somehow Liam manages to stay upright.

Zayn is a bit slower to follow, sticking just his arm out into the rain before gradually stepping out into the deluge, joining them in their games.

I stay back, not being a fan of rain. It’s too cold and wet, and storms aren’t fun either.

“C’mon,” Laura calls, jogging over to me. “It ain’t that bad.”

“Says the one who’s used to it,” I reply. Her smile falters a little, and she tilts her head to the side.

“Ya can’t get used to nothin’ iff’n ya don’t try it first,” she says quietly. “It ain’t gonna hurt ya, it’s pretty warm.”

I stay where I am, looking down at my feet, until I feel a tug on my hand.

“Come ooon,” Laura tries, pulling at my arm. “Iff’n ya don’t like it, you can go inside. At least  _try_  it.”

“Fine,” I sigh, trying to keep a straight face as Laura’s bright smile returns and she tugs me outside into the rain. I cringe as it hits, me, soaking through my clothes and hair.

“C’mon, ya big sissy!” Laura teases, letting go of my hand. She spreads her arms, twirling in a circle, flinging droplets of water from her hair as she whirls around.

I slowly uncross my arms, unaware of how they got that way in the first place, and hold my hands out in front of me, watching as the rain washes the dirt off of my skin. It creates strange lines of dirty and clean skin as it runs down my arms, dripping off my elbows.

Laura laughs as Yankee knocks her over onto the ground, the water splashing around her.

The big dog runs over to me, trying to knock me over too, and I laugh.

Maybe the rain isn’t so bad after all.

A few hours later, we're all watching a movie, sitting on the couches in clean, dry clothes, and I'm cuddled up with Laura.

Suddenly I hear brakes squealing and gravel flying, then an engine being shut off. A couple seconds later a door slams, then there are footsteps on the front porch before the door opens. My back is to the door, so I turn around to see who it is.

The messy blonde hair tells me it's Jeremy, but it's not the Jeremy I'm used to seeing. His eyes are red, his cheeks are stained with tears, he looks a mess.

He looks like he was - at one point anyway - all dressed up to go somewhere. A blue plaid shirt - now halfway undone, the jeans that Laura has said are his favorites, and it looks like he polished his boots, but now they're scuffed and scratched.

"Wh-where's Laura?" He asks, sniffling and looking at the floor.

She turns around to look at him, saying, "Right here."

When she sees him, she gasps, her brown eyes filling with worry, then she runs to him, scrambling over the back of the couch.

"What's wrong Jerbear?" she asks softly, trying to get him to look at her. After a few seconds,  she gently grabs his face, forcing him to face her, but he still won't meet her eyes.

"Jeremy Matthew Dillon! Tell me what's wrong!" she says quietly, her tone firm.

"It's..." He can't keep going, his voice cracks so badly.  He wraps his arms around Laura,  burying his head in her shoulder, sobbing.

I can hear him mumbling something, but his voice is so muffled that I can't understand him, but I can tell it's bad by the way Laura visibly stiffens when be says it.

"Oh, Jerbear..." she says softly, hugging him and rubbing his back as he cries, the sobs racking through his whole body.

"You wanna go upstairs?" she asks quietly. He nods, and Laura begins gently pulling him towards the steps, then slowly up them.

"Laura?" I call quietly. She turns around.

"I'll be back in a few minutes."

That was two hours ago.

I'm waiting downstairs, sitting on a barstool  by the kitchen counter, when she finally comes out of her room and down the stairs, dressed in sweats and an old t shirt.

"What're you still doin' up? 'S almost midnight," she asks tiredly.

"I was waiting for you," I say as she leans her elbows onto the counter. "What was wrong with Jeremy?" I ask. She seems to get angry really quickly after I say it, clenching her hands into fists. Maybe I shouldn't have asked...

"That whore he called his girlfriend."

"Called? Do you mean..."

"Yep. Ungrateful little bitch cheated."

"Is he gonna be ok?" I ask. All the anger seems to leave her in a rush, and she appears to have a hard time even holding herself up.

"I hope so. This always happens. Not th’ cheating, but he always comes ta me. I've helped him through so many breakups... But thiss'n... I dunno. He really liked 'er."

"I hope he feels better soon," I say.

"Me too. But right now I need sleep."

"Alright..." I agree.

She starts up the stairs, then stops, sighing.

"What's wrong?" I ask, stepping onto the first step.

"Jeremy's asleep on my bed."

"So what's the problem?" I ask, not getting what she's saying.

"I can't sleep in my bed. ‘E takes up th’ whole thing," she groans. "I'll jus’ sleep on th’ couch."

She tries turning around, but I won't let her. I'm not about to let her sleep on the couch either.

"You can sleep in my room," I suggest.

"Ya sure?" I nod.

"Yeah, it's cool."

"A'right. Thanks."

"It's nothing."

We walk up the stairs, and I open the door and let her walk into my room first. She looks around a little, before turning to look at me.

"So how're we doin' this?"

"Um... You can have the bed, I guess... I'll sleep on the floor."

"Y’sure? You could-"

"No, it's alright, I just-" She puts a hand over my mouth, stopping me from saying anything else.

"D'ya have an issue with sleepin' in th' same bed? Or would that be weird?"

I shake my head. I'd be alright with that. We did just do the same thing all of last week.

"Kay, good," she says, dropping her hand. "Then nobody's gotta sleep on th' floor. What side ya want?"

"Um, that side," I say, pointing to the side closest to us.

"Okay," she says, climbing onto the bed and crawling over to the opposite side. She slides under the sheet, wiggling down until the cover comes up to her chin. Then she looks over at me, seeing that I haven't moved.

"You gonna get in 'r jus' stand there?"

I grin, then climb in after her, pulling the blanket up over myself, then crossing my arms behind my head and laying back.

"D'you usually not unpack yer stuff?" she asks quietly. So she noticed my suitcases full of clothes.

I shake my head. "Not unless I'm at home. It's easier that way."

"What's it like not bein' at home all th' time?"

"It's alright. I just miss home a lot. But all the places we get to see are really cool, I mean, I'd never get to see them otherwise."

"That sounds fun."

"It is," I agree. "What about you? Where have you been?"

She laughs quietly. "I ain't never been outta Alabama. Ain't gone no farther'n Auburn."

"Really?" It must be nice to be able to stay in one place your whole life. I've moved more times than I can count.

"Yup. 'S alright though. I like it here. ‘Course, I been here my whole life. Don't know no different." This raises my curiosity.

"Do you want to stay here your whole life though?"

In the dark, I see her nod. "Yeah. It'd be nice ta see my kids runnin' ‘round out here like I did."

I wait a moment, then ask the question that's been at the back of my mind for awhile now.

"So, how is it that you can just mention offhand that you want your kids to grow up out here, but you don't want to talk about having kids otherwise?"

I feel her stiffen, and I worry that she'll shut down again and just ignore me. She sighs, then quietly says, "I a'most had a kid."

It takes a second for it to sink in, then I find myself asking, "what? How?" as I look over at her.

Even in the dark, I can feel the 'are-you-serious?' look she's giving me. "Oh... So what happened?"

"Well, ya don't see a kid runnin' 'round, do ya?" she says sarcastically.

"Did you get an abortion or something?"

She gasps. "Hell no! I'd never do somethin' like that! That's murder!" Good to know we're on the same side about this.

"Well, what happened then?" I ask.

"I ‘as 'bout two months in, tryin' ta figure out how ta tell Wyatt an' Daddy, an' I woke up one mornin' an' went ta th' bathroom, an' there ‘as jus' blood e'rywhere." She sniffles. Oh no, please don't cry. "I - I lost th' baby." She starts hiccuping, obviously trying not to cry, and I do the only thing I can think of. I wrap my arms around her, pulling her into me.

"Please don't cry," I say, "take deep breaths, it's alright, I’m sorry."

"Sorry, I jus'-" she starts, cutting herself off with a hiccup. "I feel like it was my fault. Like I shoulda done somethin' different, an' maybe..."

"Laura, there probably wasn't anything you could have done. If it was meant to happen, it would've." When did I get so prophetic?

“It was prolly fer th’ best. I ‘as goin’ ta college, an Wyatt… I dunno what he was gonna do. I prolly wouldn’ta been a good mom anyway,” she says with a small sniffle.

“Don’t say that, you’d make a great mum,” I tell her. She would, it’s true.

“Ya think so?” I nod.

“I know so. Just look at how you are with Hanna and Johnny. You’re great with kids.”

“Thanks Louis.”

“Just telling the truth. But you’re welcome.”

“Ya know, yer a’right,” she says. “I might jus’ miss ya when ya leave.” She yawns, then wiggles a little closer to me.

“What are you doing?” I ask.

“Gettin' comfy. You smell good,” she says, yawning again.

“Does he know?” I ask.

“Wyatt?” I nod. “No, I never did tell ‘im. Daddy don’t know either.”

“Who does know?”

“Me, Jeremy, an’ you.”

“Oh.”

“Night night.”

“Goodnight,” I reply, a little confused. As Laura falls asleep, I stay awake, thinking.

She must trust me a lot, to tell me something like that. I’m glad she trusts me, but that must have been awful to go through. And she was only eighteen, still a kid herself. That’s why she never wants to talk about herself and kids. It must still hurt to think about.


	40. Chapter 40

Laura’s Point of View

The next morning, I wake up, and I’m not sure where I am. I’m surrounded by something warm. I’m not sure what it is, but it smells really good. 

I take a deep breath through my nose, moving closer to whatever it is that smells so good, and close my eyes again, ready to go back to sleep. 

That is, until whatever it is moves. 

“I know you’re awake,” a grumbly voice says. Louis.  _That’s_  where I am.

“No ‘m not,” I reply, burrowing further into the good smell. 

“What are you doing?” he asks. 

“Smells good.”

“That’s me, Laura.”

“ _You_  smell good then.” 

**_Cause I’m just sitting out here watching airplanes, take off..._ **

Louis groans. “Not again…”

“What?” 

“He’s been playing that same song since four this morning,” he whines. 

“Oh, you poor thing,” I mock. 

“It’s not funny!” he says, shoving his face into the pillow. 

“What d’ya want me ta do ‘bout it?”

“Go shut it off.”

“What? And leave my comfy spot where things smell good? No way.”

“Please? My head hurts,” Louis groans. 

“Ehhh… I ain't findin’ it worth my time.” That sounded fancy. You go, Laura.

“I’ll rub your shoulders or something,” he offers. I like the sound of that. My shoulders are almost always sore. 

“Keep talkin’.” 

“What about a back massage?”

“There ya go, I’ll be right back.”

I climb out of bed as he laughs, walking over to the door before opening it and walking out. 

Louis’ Point of View

"I ‘as jus' kiddin'. Ya don't have ta," Laura says when she walks back in and sees me sitting up on the edge of my bed.

"No, it's cool." I shrug. "I'll do it."

"You sure?" I nod. "Alright... how d’ya wanna do this?" 

"Just lay down and relax, I got you."

"Okay." She crawls onto the bed, her head resting on her arms as she lays on her stomach. "A’right, work yer magic."

I climb on top of her, setting one knee on either side of her hips. I put my hands on her shoulders and push my thumbs down, making small circles on her muscles. 

I feel her relax underneath me, a sigh making its way out of her.

I keep working out knots in the muscles in her shoulders, and find that there are a lot. Each time I find one, she makes a small noise, as if it hurts. After a particularly tight one, she lets out a small moan.

"You alright?" I ask, pausing for a second. 

"Mmhmmm... feels good."

Once I know she isn't in pain, my hands begin to move again, this time going a little farther down, in between her shoulder blades.

Either she's not trying, or she can't hold in the soft moans escaping her lips. They start out small, but once I start rolling my knuckles on her back, they begin getting louder.

I didn't think about it at first, but maybe this wasn't the best spot for me to sit for this.

I'm straddling her, she's underneath me, completely at my mercy, already moaning at my touch.

Before I know it, my mind is thinking of so many dirty things I could do with her that I can't keep them straight.

Oh no. Not right now. I feel my blood run from my brain, where I need it, to other places.  No, she's gonna feel it. It's impossible for her not to, I'm too close to her. 

Why is it now that I can only think of how fit she is, and how easy it would be to just...

"Hey, you ok?" she says from beneath me.

"Yeah. I'm fine," I reply,  my voice sounding low and husky. "How are you?"

"I'm good," she says easily. How can she not feel it? I mean, it's  _right there_. 

"Hey Louis, where'd - oh hey," I hear Harry's voice say. I look over at the door to see him leaning against the doorframe, a smirk on his face. "Found her."

"Watcha want?" Laura asks, turning her head her head to look at Harry. 

"I was just wondering where you were. Are you gonna make breakfast?"

"Maybe," she shoots back. She looks over her shoulder at me. “Don’t stop…” she says, making me snap out of my daze and start moving my hands again, not noticing that I stopped in the first place. 

“Is that a yes or a no?” Harry asks, still watching intently.

“Later. Not now,” she replies. 

Suddenly she tenses, then goes completely limp underneath me. “Oh God,” she moans. 

“Was that it?” I ask, trying to keep my voice from cracking. 

“Yeah, right there.” 

Harry’s Point of View

“You’re sure there wasn’t something else going on there?” I ask Louis after breakfast. We’re walking out to the stables to saddle up and move some more cattle. Jeremy had stayed through the meal, then went home, still not quite himself.

“Yes, I’m sure,” Louis replies exasperatedly.

“Then what was.. that?” I ask, motioning toward his crotch. 

He groans, rolling his eyes. 

“If you heard the sounds she was making, you would have gotten hard too. No joke.”

“Maybe it’s just because you like her,” I tease. 

He pauses for a second, his eyebrows furrowing as he thinks. He looks like he’s just had an epiphany.

“Oh my gosh, you do, don’t you?” I ask. He didn’t deny it like he usually does.

“No, I don’t,” he says, shaking his head. But his voice lacks it’s usual conviction, like he’s not sure of it himself. “I don’t,” he adds when he sees the look I’m giving him. 

Then we’re at the stables, where everyone else is, and I can’t ask anything else because Laura’s there, and it would be awkward. 

“You’re telling me about it later,” I warn, and he just nods, going off to his horse’s stall. 

Later turns into even later, and before I know it, there’s kids in the bunkhouse and then we’re headed off to a volleyball game, the truck packed full of people. 

“Johnny, get yer foot outta Liam’s face,” Laura says patiently. “It ain’t nice ta make people smell those things.”

“But I washed ‘em yesterday!” Johnny defends, crossing his arms as he turns to sit in Liam’s lap the right way, instead of upside down like he was. 

“That ain’t th’ point, silly,” Laura laughs. 

“Lulu, why ain’t you dressed up?” Hanna asks.

“Cause my team plays second. We got a whole game ta sit through,” Laura replies as she turns down another long stretch of dirt road. 

“Can we watch you play?” Johnny asks. 

“Dunno. Depends on when yer folks come ta getcha,” Laura tells him. “Iff’n they take long enough, ya might get ta see some o’ th’ game.”

“I hope they don’t come get us till tomorrow,” Hanna says quietly. 

“I don’t think yer gonna get that lucky,” Laura laughs. 

Before long we’re sitting up in the bleachers in the gym at the high school, along with several other people, watching as the other team warms up. Laura and her team are down on the court, helping the other players with the drills. 

“So, it’s later,” I mutter to Louis, careful not to talk too loud. I’m pretty sure he doesn’t want the other lads or the two kids to hear.

He sighs. “I dunno.” 

“Do you?”

“I dunno, that’s what I just said,” he repeats. 

“Kay… well, what do you think about her?”

He shrugs. “She’s pretty, she’s nice, she makes me laugh. I do stuff I wouldn’t normally do when I’m with her. I dunno…” he trails off, putting his head in his hands. 

“So… what usually happens when you like a girl?” I ask. 

“I don’t know, it’s been a while. I haven’t got the tingly thing that I get,” he replies. 

“Tingly thing?” I ask. 

“Yeah, like when you touch somebody and you get this tingly feeling?” he asks. “It’s stupid, I know.”

“No, that’s.. kinda cute, actually,” I admit. 

“Thanks,” he says sarcastically. “Just love being cute.”

“I didn’t mean it like that,” I start. Louis shakes his head. 

“I know you didn’t, you’re fine. I just don’t know what to do,” he says.

“Well, how about you just keep doing what you’re doing, and let it sort itself out?” I suggest. 

“That’s what I was gonna do,” he agrees, looking down at the court, where Laura’s making her way toward us. 

“Hanna! Johnny!” she calls, “Yer Ma’s here fer ya!” 

The two kids grumble about not being able to watch Laura play, but follow her out the door and down the hall.

“And she’s good with kids,” Louis adds.

Laura’s Point of View

We’re up in the bleachers, about three rows from the bottom, with the rest of my team. Rafael is down on the court, helping the other coach with her team. I’m sitting between Harry and Liam, Niall and Zayn behind us, and Louis is in front of me, leaning back on my knees. The guys keep leaning over, back, and around to ask what’s going on, or what the different calls mean. I think I’ve been asked what a libero is about five times. 

Our team is up by four, the score is fourteen to ten. However, the setter isn’t setting the ball up, much to the opposing team’s luck.

There’s a collective groan from the crowd as the setter, Lacie, yet again, tips - well, attempts to tip - the ball over, right into the blocker’s hands, then stands there, watching the ball fall to the floor.

“Come on! Set it up!” I yell, beyond frustrated with this girl. The rest of the team shouts similar things. 

“What’s that mean?” Liam asks, reaching over and grabbing a handful of popcorn from the bag in my hands. I swat at his hand with a smile as the other team serves the ball. 

“It means she’s gettin’ perfect passes, like that’n” I say, referring to the amazing pass the libero, Aly, just made, “but she ain’t settin’ it up fer th’ hitters ta hit. She’s goin’ fer th’ tip e’ry time, but it ain’t workin’, cause they got ‘er figured out, an' - right there,” I say, pointing at the blockers getting into position, “they’re right there ta block ‘er when she does it.” The ball hits the floor again, making the score fourteen to twelve. “Like that.”

“Come on ladies! Get it back!” Zoe yells from her spot by Camryn. 

Lacie looks up to the stands when she hears Zoe’s words, then turns back to her teammates on the court, clapping her hands together, yelling, “come on ladies, let’s go!”

“Don’t yell at them when it was yer fault,” I mutter, shaking my head.

Soon the score is twenty three to twenty two, the game nearly over. Our team only needs two more points to win this game, then they have to win one more game to win the set. 

The other team has the ball. The pass is good, and so is the set. The hit is amazing, except that its blocked by our middle, Sarah.

The crowd roars when the ball smacks off of her hands and onto the floor of the opposing team’s side. Sarah looks up at me, and I give her two thumbs up, making her smile widen.

Our team has the ball now, and Jamie is back to serve. It’s a great serve, just barely skimming the top of the net and hitting the floor right in front of the middle back player on the other side, scoring the final point. 

“Is that it?” Louis asks, turning around. “Are they done?”

I shake my head. “Nope. That‘s jus’ th’ first one. They play best two outta three. Got at least one more left,” I say, standing up and stretching, before following the rest of my team down the bleachers. 

“Where are you going?” Zayn asks. 

“Gotta go change. Iff’n they win thiss’n, we play next. ‘M comin’ right back.”

Louis’ Point of View

She walks down the bleacher steps and out the door, both her team and my eyes following her. I can’t wait to see her play in a game.

“Hey you!” a voice shouts. I turn to see a guy who looks about my age, with light brown hair and blue eyes, looking up at me. “You here fer Laura?” he asks. 

I nod. “Yeah, what about you?” I will never understand why people around here are so friendly.

“Sam. She’s my girlfriend. Plays front row. Probably the best one out there,” he says proudly. Oh buddy, I bet you haven’t actually seen her play before. This must be the boyfriend who’s always in the gym instead of supporting his girlfriend. Even Laura says that Sam can’t really hit that well, and when she does, she can’t control where it goes.

I just nod with a polite smile, keeping my comments to myself for once. 

“I’m Tommy. Tommy York,” he says, extending his hand for me to shake, which I do. 

“I’m Louis,” I say with a smile. 

“So, is Laura your girl?” he asks “You two seem pretty friendly.”

I shake my head. “No, we’re just friends.”

The phrase tastes weird on my tongue, sounds weird coming out of my mouth. I furrow my eyebrows, trying to figure out what the heck is going on with me.

“Is he bothering you?” Sam asks as she walks up the bleachers. 

I shake my head, putting a smile on my face. She smiles back, then sits down next to Tommy. He puts his arm around her, and I turn my attention back to the game.

The home team is winning twenty one to sixteen, but they’ve lost the ball, and they’re in the rotation that Laura’s said doesn’t work well. 

After a couple of bad plays, the coach calls a timeout, the score twenty one to eighteen. It’s now that the rest of Laura’s team comes back, dressed in their uniforms. Laura climbs back up the bleachers, taking her seat again. 

“What took you so long?” I ask.

“I had ta pee. Five games takes awhile ta play, an’ there ain’t no real breaks,” she answers, putting her feet up on the bench that I’m sitting on, one on either side of me. She leans down to wrap her arms around my neck and rest her chin on top of my head, startling me for a moment.  

“That’s an acceptable reason I s’pose,” I say, wrapping my hands around her forearms, feeling something like little crackles of electricity when my skin touches hers. 

“So how’ve they been doin’?” she asks, her throat vibrating against the back of my head as she talks. 

“They’ve been alright, I guess.” I tell her what happened on the court while she was gone. While I’m talking, I see Tommy turn and look at us, raising an eyebrow, which causes Sam to turn around. Laura notices, I can feel her head turn on top of mine as Sam wiggles her eyebrows. I assume Laura makes a face at them, because they laugh and turn around. 

“So I see ya met Big Bad Tommy,” Laura murmurs. 

“Yeah. I guess I did,” I reply. And I told him we’re just friends, because that’s what we are.

“Hey, you a’right?” she asks. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I reply. 

“You ain’t actin’ fine,” she mutters. “You hungry?”

“Now that I think about it, yeah, I kinda am,” I tell her.

“You wanna go get somethin’?” she asks. 

“Sure.” 

We both get up, telling the lads that we’re going to the concession stand, and then we make our way down the bleachers and out the door. 

Once we’re in the hallway, Laura links her arm through mine. 

“So what’s really buggin’ ya?” she asks. 

“Nothing, I’m f-” I stop when I see the look she’s giving me. 

“Don’t make me call bullshit.”

I sigh, looking down at my feet. “It’s nothing.”

I don’t really even know what it is. I think I’m just overthinking everything. Maybe I just need some time alone, and then I can think through this whole thing, and then I’ll be fine. That’s all I need.

“Did Tommy say somethin’?” she asks. 

“Sort of…” It wasn’t really him, but he made me think about it more…

“Do I need ta kick ‘is ass?” Laura asks. I chuckle.

“No, you don’t need to kick anyone’s ass,” I tell her, knowing full well that she probably could if she wanted to. 

“Good,” she says with a smile. “Iff’n ya wanna talk ‘bout whatever’s buggin’ ya, I’m here.”

I give her a smile, silently thanking her for not pushing it. 

After we’ve argued over who would pay for the stuff, a fight that I won, we walk back to the gym, eating our candy. Laura’s hand keeps swinging close to mine, and when they brush each other, I feel a tingle shoot up my arm. Am I imagining this or is it really happening?

We walk back into the gym, and Laura jogs over to where her team’s gathered by the bench. 

“Is the game over?” I ask as I sit back down with the lads. 

“Yeah, they lost,” Harry tells me. He raises an eyebrow. “Where’d you go?”

“With Laura, we went to get some candy,” I tell him. 

“And you didn’t get me any?” he asks, acting shocked.

“No, I didn’t.”

The team is making their way onto the court now, pairing up and standing one on each side of the court, throwing a ball back and forth between the pairs. Laura’s with Erica, and they’re talking while they warm up, saying things that make the other one laugh. 

“Captains!” the referee shouts, and Laura throws the ball to Erica before jogging over to where the ref is standing, joining the small group. Another girl from the other team makes her way over as well, she must be the other captain. 

The two girls shake hands, smiling at each other. Then the ref flips a coin, and from the look on Laura’s face, she won the coin toss. She says something, then the two girls shake hands again and return to their own sides of the net, going back to their partners.

After a couple minutes, the ref blows the whistle and the opposing team clears off their side of the court standing by the bench on their side, watching as Laura’s team takes the court completely, forming five lines on one side of the net while Rafael wheels the two ball carts onto the other side. Georgia stands up at the nets, and the lines start behind the white line in the middle of the court. Laura is in the line in the middle, of course.   

Rafael tosses a ball over, then Erica passes it up to Georgia, who sets it up for Laura to slam it down. 

As ball after ball goes through the sequence, and the girls go through the lines again and again, I notice that Laura never stops moving, not even once. She’s either bouncing on the balls of her feet or shifting from one foot the other. I can practically see the energy running through her body like an electric current. 

The ref blows the whistle, and the Warriors walk to their bench, grabbing water bottles and towels. I watch Laura as she watches the other team, paying attention to how they hit the ball. She told me she does that so she knows how to block their hits. 

The lads are talking, but I’m oblivious to what they’re saying. My attention is on the tall brunette with long legs and the number thirteen on her green uniform. She looks up at me, and our eyes meet for a second. She crosses her eyes with a smile, then leans toward Rafael, who’s trying to tell her something. He points to the net, then to the white line on the floor. Laura nods, smirking, and Rafael goes to talk to Zoe while Laura returns to watching the other team, analyzing every detail of how they play as she takes sips of red Gatorade from her water bottle. 

The whistle is blown again, with two minutes left on the scoreboard clock. Both teams line up on the endlines of their respective sides, each girl holding a ball. Laura bounces her ball a couple times before taking two quick steps forward, tossing the ball up before leaping into the air and hitting it over the net. Seconds later the others serve, and the air is filled with volleyballs.

When the buzzer sounds, the girls gather up all the volleyballs, putting them into the ball carts and wheeling them out of the way. Then Laura’s team gathers around their coach, and he starts talking to them while Camryn walks around the circle, something in her hands. When the coach finishes, Laura starts in with saying something, and then they’re putting their hands in the middle of the circle, saying something that I can’t quite understand, and walking away.

The teams line up on the endlines again, in number order, facing each other. Since Laura is the highest number on her team, she’s the farthest from the crowd, down at the end of the line. 

“Ladies and gentlemen,” a voice says through the speakers, “welcome to tonight’s match between the Lady Bulldogs and your Lady Warriors!”

The person goes through a long list of people, thanking each of them on behalf of the teams for making the game possible.

“And now for the starting lineups. For the bulldogs, number one, Bambi Smith… number six, Sammi Short…”

As each girl’s name is called, they step out of the line and wave at the crowd.

“And for your Lady Warriors, number two, Vanessa Rose!”

The short blonde girl steps out of the line, waving at the crowd, and I notice a line of red paint on her cheek. 

“Number three, Erica Cannon!”

Erica has a similar line of paint, and so do the next four girls.

“And your captain, unlucky thirteen, Laura Johnson!” 

Laura steps out with a wave and a smile, a large red handprint painted on her face. She’s the only one with a different design, and it looks a little scarier than the rest. The thumb of the hand crosses over her mouth, and one of the fingers looks like it goes right over her eye. 

War paint, that’s what it makes me think of. They are the Warriors. I suppose it fits.

The ref blows the whistle and the two teams run toward each other, passing each other on opposite sides of the net, shaking hands as they wish each other good luck. Then the starters take their places on the court. For the Warriors, Georgia is on the right in the front row, Laura is in the middle, and Camryn is on the left. In the back row, Vanessa is the farthest to the right, Erica is in the middle, and Sam is on the far left. Vanessa is standing behind the white endline, holding the ball as she waits to serve and start the game. 

One of the referees takes his place on top of the stand at one end of the net, while the other walks around through the court, making sure that each player is in the correct spot by checking the numbers on the backs of their uniforms. When he’s confirmed that the girls are in the right spots, he gives the other ref a thumbs up, then stands at the opposite end of the net.

The ref on the stand turns to the girl from who went to the coin toss earlier. 

“Captain, is your team ready?” he asks. The girl nods with a smile, and he turn to Laura. 

“Captain, is  _your_  team ready?” Laura answers with a curt nod, then turns to face the net, putting her hands up, ready to block anything that comes her way. 

The ref blows the whistle, and Vanessa tosses the ball into the air, hitting it over the net. A girl on the other side passes it, too far for their setter to get a hand on it, but right where Laura can reach it. She moves quickly, springing off the floor and swinging her arm to hit the ball straight down onto the floor, making it impossible for the other team to return it. 

Laura grins, joining the other girls on the court in the center for a round of congratulations, a few neck slaps thrown in, before they return to their spots, ready for the next play. 

Vanessa serves again, and this time the pass from the opposing team is just about perfect. Laura follows the ball as it moves from the back row to the setter, then to the hitter. When the girl goes to swing at the ball, Laura jumps, her hands up, and the ball hits her hands before going down toward the floor. The libero barely digs it back up, sending it back up over the net and onto Laura’s side. 

“Free ball!” Rafael shouts, and the team backs up, getting ready for the ball to come their way. Vanessa passes the ball to Georgia, who sets it to Camryn, who hits it down onto the floor on the other side of the net. 

The next few points go like that, Laura’s team setting the ball up nearly perfect each time. Soon the score is seven to zero, the Warriors winning, and the other coach calls for a time out. 

Laura grabs her bottle of Gatorade from the bench, drinking down about half of it as she listens to her coach tell them what needs to be done. When he’s finished, the team puts their hands in the middle, and say something else that I can’t understand before walking back onto the court, waiting for the other coach to finish talking - rather, yelling - to her team. 

Laura stand up at the net, facing Erica, who’s on the opposite side of the court. They just make faces at each other, passing the time, and soon both of them are laughing loudly, along with a few other members of the team that are watching their exchange. 

As the other team returns to the court, Laura turns around, facing the net again. The ref blows the whistle again, and Laura puts her hands up, ready to block as Vanessa serves the ball. Right into the net. 

The other team cheers, happy that they scored, and Laura’s team gets into position to receive the ball. Laura steps back to the ten foot line, getting as low as she can, bending her long legs and touching the floor with her hand before holding her hands out in front of herself, ready to pass the ball. 

They practiced this on Sunday, they should do alright with it. 

The ball is served, and Erica dives for it, passing it to Georgia, who sets it up for Laura, who hits it over the net, and right into the blocker’s hands, forcing the ball back to Laura’s team. Sam pops it up for a set, and Laura calls for the ball again. Georgia sets it to her, and she just wails on the damn thing, hitting it as hard as she can. It bounces off the block again, Erica being the one to dig it up this time, and when Laura calls for the ball again, I can hear the frustration in her voice. 

Georgia sets it to Laura again, and the tall girl hits the ball so hard that the force she puts behind it nearly bends her body in half in midair. The ball goes straight through the blocker’s hands, hitting the floor with a loud thud. 

Laura’s feet hit the ground at the same time the ball does, one side of her top lip pulled back in a snarl. Oh.

So she does growl at people, Camryn wasn’t just making that up. 

“Close your mouth, mate,” Harry mutters. “You’re gonna catch flies.”

I shoot him a glare, pressing my lips together, then turn back to watch the game. 

They’re back at it, setting the ball up, Laura following the ball as it moves from player to player on the other side of the net. 

When the hitter jumps up to hit the ball, Laura’s right there, and maybe it’s scary or something, but the ball gets set over instead of hit onto the floor, making Laura smirk as she backs up to take the hit that scores the next point. 

The rest of that game continues like that, Laura keeping the other team from getting any good hits, and the rest of her team working together to get the ball over and score. 

When that game finishes, the score is twenty five to thirteen, and the two teams switch sides, crossing under the net. 

A couple of the girls on the other team glare at Laura as she walks past them, but then she says something to them, and they smile when she walks away, going to join her team in a huddle around Rafael. After he’s finished, the team takes a seat on the bench, except Laura, who stands at the end of the row of chairs. She takes a drink, then sets the bottle on the floor next to one of the chairs, walking onto the court with th rest of the starters. 

The first ten points of this game all go to Laura’s team. Then they lose the ball, then they get it back, and then lose it again. Then Laura has a massive block and gets the ball back for her team. 

She walks back to the endline as the team rotates, turning around to catch the ball as Georgia throws it to her. Zoe and Erica switch places, Zoe taking Laura’s spot up in the front row while Erica takes a seat on the bench, getting a well deserved break. 

After the whistle is blown, Laura glances over at Rafael, nodding once she sees the two fingers he holds up. She takes a deep breath, then takes two quick steps, tossing the ball into the air and jumping, then hitting it over the net. 

The ball flies through the air, looking like it’s going to all the way across the gym, but instead it lands just on the other side of the net, right in front of the girl playing the middle position.

The next five or so serves go like that, none of them coming back over the net. 

The coach of the opposite team keeps making substitutions, but it doesn’t help them much. Finally, when the score is eighteen to five, a time out is called. 

Laura walks over, taking a towel off the back of her chair and wiping her face off, then reaching for her drink, tipping it up to find nothing in it. 

She pouts, which is actually pretty cute, then tosses it into a nearby trash can before joining the huddle. 

“She’s doing pretty good,” Liam says to no one in particular. 

“Yeah, she’s been working hard. It’s paying off,” I reply. 

“I think Liam was talking about Erica,” Zayn says with a grin, nudging Liam when the lad’s face gets a little redder than usual. 

“Aww, Liam!” I say as reach up to ruffle his hair. “You’re cute.”

“You know what would be really cute?” he asks, a small smirk growing on his face. 

“What?”

“Lola.”

“What?” I ask again. 

“Lola. You don’t know what Lola is?” Zayn asks with a grin. I shake my head. 

“Well you should, you’re part of it,” Liam says. 

“What am I part of?” I ask, confused.

“Lola. You know, like you and Laura,” Niall explains. 

“What? No, that’s not -” I start.

“Come on, you two are domestic as fuck already,” Zayn argues. 

“Real nice lads, just gang up on me, why don’t you?”

“Yeah, leave him alone,” Harry threatens. 

“Thank you Haz. See, that’s what friends do.”

“If he’s gonna tell anyone about it, he’s gonna tell me first,” He adds, making the other lads laugh. 

“Oh, come on!”

After the next game is over, the score twenty five to ten in favor of the Warriors, the lads have finally stopped messing with me. 

I watch as the two teams switch sides, going to sit down on the benches for a few minute’s rest. Laura doesn’t it though. She looks over at where we’re sitting, then points at me, beckoning me to come down there. I raise my eyebrows, pointing at myself and mouthing, ‘me?’ She nods, and I stand, making my way down the steps of the bleachers as the lads start their whistling, my face feeling a bit warmer. 

I jog around the outside of the white line, careful not to get my ‘street shoes,’ as Laura calls them, on the court. 

Once I’m over by where she is, Laura walks over to me. 

“Whaddya want?” I ask. 

“Could ya go get my other Gatorade outta my bag? It’s in th’ locker room,” she asks. 

“Like, the  _girl’s_  locker room?” I ask, keeping my voice low.

“There ain’t nobody in there, you’ll be fine. Please?” She looks up at me with those huge, brown eyes, and I don't think anyone could say no.

I sigh. “I guess. But if I get in trouble…” 

“You ain’t gonna. Iff’n ya do, I’ll take care of it,” she says. “Thanks Lou.”

“Laura!” 

“Set it by th’ bench when ya get back,” she tells me before walking over to the huddle.

Might as well get this over with, I think to myself as I walk toward the locker room door. 

“What took you so long?” Harry asks when I sit back down with them again. 

“Took care of something,” I reply.

“In the girl’s locker room?” he asks. “Like what?”

“Laura wanted me to go get her something,” I say quietly. “There wasn’t anyone in there,” I add when he looks at me with his eyebrows raised.

“Uh-huh… What was in there?”

“Lots of bags. Some shoes,” I tell him. There wasn’t much left lying around. Laura’s team must keep their stuff pretty neat. 

“What did you have to get?”

“Laura had another Gatorade in her bag.”

“She told you to go in her bag and get something out of it?” He exclaims. 

I roll my eyes. “Yeah. What’s the big deal?”

“What does she keep in it?”

“Stuff. There were socks and another shirt and a pair of shorts.” A very small pair of shorts, nonetheless. 

“No underwear?”

“No, no underwear.” I’m not going to say I wasn’t disappointed, because that would be a lie, and my mum didn’t raise me to lie. 

“Hey, hey, hey!” I hear Laura yell. I look at where she is, and see the ball coming off of Sam’s arms and going toward Georgia. 

I barely hear the blonde say “Laura!” over the dull roar of the crowd, and then the ball is set.. behind Georgia? But Laura’s on the other side of you, what are you doing?

Laura runs straight forward, toward Georgia, then at the last possible second she turns to the right, following the ball. She takes about three more steps before pushing off of one foot, twisting around somehow in midair and hitting the ball, sending it rocketing straight onto the ground on the other side of the net. 

She lands, throwing a snarl at the other team, then joins her team in the middle of the court for a round of cheers and congratulations. 

The score is now twenty three to seventeen, and Laura’s team has just lost the ball. They’re in the last rotation where Laura’s in the front row, so if they get the ball back, she won’t be the one to score the last point with a hit. She might be the one to serve the last point though. 

The server for the other team looks nervous. She probably knows that the outcome of the entire match could be determined by her serve. 

The whistle is blown, and the girl timidly throws the ball into the air, hitting it over just as timidly. The ball just skims the net, falling to the floor. It’s the kind of serve that usually hits the ground because no one can get to the ball. But not this time. 

I see a flash of green and white as Laura dives to the floor, one tanned arm touching the ball and making it possible for Camryn to get a hand on it. 

I hear the awful screech of skin dragging across the hardwood floor, and grimace. Laura’s going to have a bad floor burn from that.

But I suppose it’s worth it, because Camryn tips the ball over, catching the other team off guard and scoring a point for the Warriors. 

Laura peels herself off the ground and walks back to the endline as the team rotates, catching the ball when it’s thrown to her. 

As she walks closer, I can see the irritated skin of her leg, stretching almost the entire length of it. She’s covered in sweat, breathing heavily. She’s probably exhausted, but she won’t stop, won’t give up until the game is over. 

She waits for the whistle, then takes a deep breath. Left, right, toss, left, jump, hit, land. She runs to her spot, ready for the ball to come back. The other team passes, sets, and passes the ball over the net to where Sam is. The curly haired girl’s pass isn’t the best, sending the ball flying toward the opposite side of the court. 

Laura’s running again, a flash of green as she leaps for the ball, hitting it with her fist as she hits the floor again. Erica passes the ball over, and the other team sets it up again, this time hitting it straight toward Laura. 

She doesn’t flinch at all when the ball thwacks against her arms, jolting her body. She just stands there, her thumbs pointed at Georgia, where she wants the ball to go.

“Hey, me!” Erica shouts. Georgia sets the ball toward the middle of the court, and the small girl takes three steps, jumping as high as she can and hitting the ball over the net, straight to the floor. 

The team goes crazy, crowding around Erica and shouting at her, wide smiles on their faces. 

When Laura gets to the shorter girl, there’s some sort of handshake performed, and then Erica’s lifted up onto the team’s shoulders, carried over to the bench, where they continue the celebration. 

“Hey, that last play was sick!” someone says as they walk out of the gym. 

“Thanks,” Erica replies, walking next to Liam as the group of us make our way out. The girls have changed their shoes and Laura must have taken a shower or something, because the sweat is gone from her face, and there’s a faint smell of soap in the air around her. Not that I’ve been taking deep breaths through my nose trying to figure out what it is or anything.   

We pile into Laura’s truck, all of us laughing and talking, Liam saying goodbye to Erica as she walks over to her truck. 

When Laura pulls out of the parking lot, she turns left instead of right, confusing the lads and I.

“Hey, isn’t the ranch the other way?” Harry asks. 

“Yeah,” Laura replies. 

“Then why are you going this way?”

“I played a good game. I want some frostin’,” Laura says. 


	41. Chapter 41

Laura's Point of View

After we get back from the stockyards the next morning, I see two four wheelers waiting in the driveway, and once I shut the truck off, I hear familiar laughter coming from the front porch of the main house.

Jeremy and Kyle are sitting in the chairs, talking to Daddy.

"There ya are!" Jeremy shouts once he sees us climbing out of the truck.

"Been here my whole life, where'd ya think I'd be?" I ask.

"Well you wasn't here when we rode over," Kyle says. "Thought ya heard we was comin' an' left."

"Nah, I wouldn't do somethin' like that," I reply, leaning on the porch railing. "Whatcha doin' here?"

"Came ta have some fun," Jeremy says, nodding toward the four wheelers. "Thought it might be good fer everyone."

He looks considerably better than he did yesterday when he left after breakfast, but I can still see a little sadness in his eyes. A day of fun would probably be good for him.

"I'll have ta check with th' boss," I say with a grin, looking at my father.

"Go on, have some fun. Won't get too many more days like this," he says with a smile, waving us off.

Soon we're walking over to the big red barn behind the stables - well, most of us are, Jeremy and Kyle are riding circles around us on their four wheelers - and once we get there, I push open the doors, revealing three more four wheelers inside.

"A couple of us're gonna haveta double up," I say as I walk in. I reach my favorite of the three, painted turquoise, and turn to the guys. "Ya'll know how ta drive these, right?"

"Course," Liam mutters, walking over to one of the small vehicles. "Niall, you wanna share?"

Niall nods, walking over and climbing on behind Liam. Harry and Zayn pair up, which leaves Louis standing by himself.

"So," he says, walking over to me. I swing my leg over the seat of the four wheeler, and nod for him to get on behind me.

"Looks like you're with me."

3rd Person Point of View

The group of friends make their way out into one of the nearby fields, mostly empty besides the large mud bog in the center of it. Jeremy and Kyle lead the way, Laura not far behind, Louis trying to stay on the back of the four wheeler as she speeds down the grassy lane. He's not sure where to put his hands, but after awhile, with the sudden, unpredictable turns Laura takes, he settles for wrapping both arms around the tall girl, holding on for all he's worth.

"Do you drive like this all the time?" he practically yells in her ear.

"Course," she replies.

"How are you still alive?" Louis shouts back, hearing nothing in return except Laura's loud laugh.

Kyle loves the sound of that laugh. It makes the day seem even brighter, even when the laugh is because Laura's spinning her tires, covering him in mud.

It's the kind of laugh that makes you think of sunshine and home, no matter where you are or what you're doing. It's like listening to your favorite song, in your favorite place, while eating your favorite food, with your favorite people.

Laura's laugh is Kyle's favorite song.

The two Dillons lead them around the edge of the large field, then turn sharply, heading straight for the mud in the middle. Laura doesn't shy away, pressing harder on the gas as she turns toward the mucky ground.

"What are you doing?" Louis shouts. "There's mud!"

"That's th' point!" Laura yells back.

There's no hesitation when they go through it either, though Louis hides his face in Laura's back, trying to avoid getting too dirty.

Of course, the attempt fails when Jeremy fishtails through the mud, slinging it all over the two of them, laughing while he does it.

"Hey!" Laura calls, spinning the four wheeler in a tight circle and returning the messy favor.

Before long, all eight of them are completely covered in mud, and the ground of the field has been torn up under the wheels of all the four wheelers, but all of them are laughing and yelling things to each other, having fun.

"So how d'ya reckon we're gonna get all this mud off?" Jeremy asks.

"Well, th' crik's jus' over there," Laura replies, gesturing with one mud covered hand. "Could go swimmin'."

"Sounds good," Liam says.

The four wheelers are parked a little ways back from the river bank, and then Laura's tugging her boots and socks off and jumping in while the guys peel their shirts off, hanging them on the branches of the big tree before diving in.

When they've sufficiently splashed all the mud off about an hour later, the seven guys and one girl climb back up the riverbank, laying out in the sun to dry off.

And as usual, the warm sun, combined with the soft sounds of the grass moving in the slight breeze has the two Dillon boys out like a light.

Laura is still awake, looking up at the clouds and trying to figure out what each one looks like.

"So where did that scar come from?" Louis asks quietly, poking Laura's leg where the raised, pink line is.

"Steer horn," Laura replies quietly.

"Really?" Louis asks with a grimace.

"Yep. Occupational hazard," Laura answers with a small smile.

"What about this one?" he asks, moving to a smaller scar on her ankle.

"Cut myself shavin'," Laura laughs.

"And that one?"

"Tigger got mad 'cause I wasn't pettin' 'im."

"What about that one?" he asks, pointing to the scar running down a sleeping Jeremy's back.

Laura grimaces.

" 'Bout two summers ago we 'as balin' hay, Jeremy an' me on th' wagon an' Daddy drivin'. Field was mostly empty, an' th' wagon 'as a'most full, we were goin' round th' fence line ta get th' last of it. We didn't have a whole lotta room ta stand on, but we thought we'd be fine. We'd done it like that 'fore."

She pauses for a second, remembering what happened next.

"We 'as arguin' over who was gonna get th' next bale when we hit a bump. I almost fell off, but 'e caught me. We weren't quite steady when the next bump hit, an' Jeremy went off th' edge, slid down th' fencepost. Tore 'is back open."

Louis grimaces. "That sound rough."

Laura nods. "We wasn't sure 'e 'as gonna make it." She looks down at Jeremy, running a hand through his messy hair. "But 'e pulled through."

"He seems to do that," Louis remarks.

"Yeah. He can get through most anything. Girls though, they're hard on 'im."

"Girls are mean," Louis mutters.

"Hey," Laura protests half heartedly, shoving him a little.

"Not you though. You're - no, you're mean too," Louis says.

"Guys're mean too," Laura replies. "S'pecially when they up n' leave an' don't tell ya nothin'."

Just as Louis is about to ask what she means, Kyle starts moving, slowly waking up.

"Hey sleepyhead," Laura says with a smile. "Any good dreams?"

Kyle answers with a lopsided grin of his own. "A few."

No one has to know except him that Laura was very prominent in most of them.

Louis' Point of View

After everyone woke up, we went back to the bunkhouse, and sat at the kitchen table, talking some more, and just hanging out. Before long, Jeremy's raiding the fridge, and comes back with a beer for each of us, something Laura turns down with a wrinkled nose.

"That's right, I forgot. How silly of me," Jeremy says when he sees her face. "Whiskey girl."

He walks back to the fridge, coming back with a glass bottle that he sets in front of Laura.

"Thanks, bud," she says with a smile, pulling the cap off and downing a swig.

By the time a few hours have gone by, Laura's getting up and looking in the fridge, but coming back empty handed.

When she notices that I'm looking over at her, she tilts her head to one side, asking me to come over there.

"Y'wanna come with me ta get some more drinks?" she asks when I lean against the counter next to her.

"Why me?"

"Yer th' only other one that's legal ta drink. Jeremy's too drunk 'r I'd take 'im. An' I can stand talkin' t'ya."

"Sure."

We climb into the truck after telling the other lads where we're going, and set off down the road. Laura's driving faster than her usual, slinging gravel and sending billowing clouds of dust into the air.

"Why are you going so fast?" I question.

"I want a drink, an' I ain't feelin' too patient," she replies, looking side to side before completely blowing past a stop sign.

"What the hell? There was a stop sign!"

"No cop, don't stop," she replies calmly. "Nobody seen it 'sides us."

"Are you sure? Shouldn't you at least slow down just in case?"

"C'mon, thought you was th' fun one," she says, momentarily taking her hand off of the gear shifter to punch me in the shoulder.

"I am, I just don't want to get pulled over," I say, resisting the urge to rub my shoulder where she hit me. It wasn't hard, but it still hurt a little.

"Don't worry 'bout it. I've talked my way outta more tickets 'n I can remember," she replies. "I'll slow down when we get ta th' pavement."

She does slow down a little once we hit the paved roads, but she's still well over the speed limit.

"Laura..." I say warily.

"What? You scared?" she asks.

"No, I'm not scared," I shoot back, though on the side that she can't see I'm gripping onto the seat, hanging on for dear life.

Suddenly I hear sirens behind us, and Laura starts cursing.

"What th' hell, they never come this far out," she says, reaching into the glove compartment. "Take yer shirt off," she tells me, pulling a couple packs of McDonald's ketchup from the compartment.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"Take yer shirt off, c'mon." I do as she says, pulling my shirt over my head.

"Wrap it 'round yer leg," she says, opening one of the ketchup packets with her teeth as she begins to slow down to pull over off the road. I wrap the shirt around my leg, and Laura squeezes ketchup onto it, smearing it all over my leg.

She stops the truck, and the police car stops behind us, the lights still flashing.

"Yer in pain. Got yer leg caught in th' baler. Takin' ya ta th' hospital," she says quietly before rolling down her window.

"Ma'am, do you know how fast you were going?" the officer asks.

" 'M awful sorry officer, I's jus' tryin' ta get 'im ta th' hospital 'fore 'e loses too much blood," Laura replies. She glances over at me, then subtly nudges my arm with her elbow. I take the hint and groan quietly, clutching at my leg where the shirt is.

"What's wrong with him?" the officer asks warily, as if he's scared to see the 'blood' on my leg. Perfect. We've got a squeamish one.

"Got 'is leg caught in th' baler, tryin' ta get some hay pulled out. Told 'im ta be more careful." She shoots a fake glare my way.

"Wasn't my fault," I grit out, acting as if my leg is killing me.

"It's a'right sugar," she soothes, petting my hair.

"Is it that bad?" the officer asks. It sounds like he doesn't want to deal with this right now. Maybe...

"I ain't too sure. Thought I'd take 'im in an' get a professional's opinion," Laura replies, adding a nervous edge to her voice. "I don't know what ta do."

"I'm seeing spots again, Laura!" I say, gripping onto her arm tightly, doing my best to sound scared.

"Easy, jus' breathe, yer gonna be a'right," she says, grabbing ahold of my face with both her hands. "Focus on my face, honey, lookit me."

"Can't see... see straight," I mumble, crossing and uncrossing my eyes before blinking rapidly, acting as if I can't focus on her dark eyes.

"I'll just let you go then, he looks pretty serious," the officer says, sounding a little freaked out. "Just make sure you drive the speed limit on the way back."

"Yessir, thank you!" Laura shouts as he walks back to his squad car. She rolls up her window, keeping one hand on my face. "Yer good at this," she mutters, tapping her thumb on my cheek. I'm glad she can't feel my heartbeat right now, it's through the roof.

"May or may not have had to act my way out of a few tickets before," I reply, rolling my head back onto the seat.

"So you are th' fun one." Laura shifts the truck back into drive, mashing the gas and taking off. "Stay there fer a lil while," she says, " 'e's prolly gonna foller us fer a few miles ta make sure we wasn't lyin'." I can see her glance in the rearview mirror a couple times, then she looks over at me, sliding her hand into my hair for a moment. Probably just to keep up the act. Can he see through the back window of the cab?

"You owe me a shirt," I say. "Though the ketchup was pretty creative."

"It'll wash out," she replies. "I knew keepin' that ketchup was a good idea."

"So we aren't really gonna go to the hospital, are we?" I ask.

She shakes her head. "Naw. I'm gonna wait'll 'e turns off, then we're cuttin' over ta th' gas station."

"He's not gonna file a report or anything?" She shakes her head again.

"Naw. Then it'll look like 'e wasn't doin' 'is job when 'e didn't offer us a police escort. We're fine. I've done this sorta stuff a'fore."

"Where'd you learn how to get away with this stuff?"

She laughs dryly. "Funny thing. Th' boyfriend who ended up bein' a cop taught me all I know 'bout avoidin' gettin' tickets. We used ta get in so much shit together. Always talked 'is way out though."

She always talks about Paul as if he was her best relationship. They seem to have had the most fun together from the sound of things. I wonder what happened between them to make them end things. Must have been something huge.

Before too long, we're walking into the party store at the gas station, me in my ketchup smeared shirt. 

"Laura!" Erica greets when she sees us from her spot behind the counter.

"Hey," Laura replies, walking over. "You reckon you could sell me a couple bottles o' Jack?"

"Sure," Erica answers without questioning it.

"So wait, you can just buy it?" I ask. "Don't you have to be twenty one or something?"

"That's th' legal age," Laura replies. "But I been buying this stuff since I 'as sixteen. They don't ask questions here."

So she didn't really  _need_  me to come with her.

"That'll be seventeen seventy six," Erica tells Laura after she rings up the two glass bottles.

"Freedom," Laura says with a grin as she hands over the money.

We say goodbye, then walk out the door, back to the truck.

"Freedom? What was that?" I ask.

"Seventeen seventy six. That's th' year th' 'Merican colonies declared their independence from th' British," Laura replies. "Thought you'd learned yer history."

"I learned that part," I mutter, climbing into the passenger seat. "I just didn't remember the year."

"British,"Laura says with a small laugh.

Laura's Point of View

When Louis and I get back, it's almost dark, and Jeremy's already started the fire in the firepit on the backside of the bunkhouse, the rest of the guys gathered around it, sitting on camping chairs and a few logs they've pulled over.

"There ya are!" Jeremy shouts when we pull up, parking so that the tailgate of the truck is facing the fire. "Thought you'd pulled over somewhere."

"We did, actually," Louis says innocently, not getting what Jeremy was implying.

Jeremy and Kyle both look up at us, their mouths open. I feel my eyes get wide and my face get red.

"Lulu, there something ya need to tell us?" Jeremy asks with a smirk.

"Not like that," I say, sending him into a fit of laughter. Louis looks at me, confused, while Kyle is still sitting there, his mouth open in shock.

"I knew you was close," Jeremy starts, unable to keep talking, he's laughing so hard. "Didn't know you was  _that_  close."

"What did I say?" Louis asks cluelessly. I open my mouth to answer him, tell him that he just basically said that we f.ucked on the side of the road, but someone else talks before I can say anything.

"She seems ta be walkin' jus' fine, don't ya think?" Jeremy asks his brother. Kyle looks at his brother, shocked, and pushes him away. That seems to make something click in Louis' head, and he takes a step away from me.

"No, no, no, we - we didn't..." he stutters, shaking his head as his cheeks turn red. This makes Jeremy laugh more, tears starting to run down his face.

"How much did he drink while we was gone?" I ask, plopping myself down on one of the logs next to Harry.

"There wasn't much left, but he finished it," Niall says glumly.

"Well, no more fer you then," I tell Jeremy. "You still got stuff ta do tamarra."

"Aw, you ain't no fun," he pouts.

"You'll be thankin' me tamarra when yer head don't hurt."

Harry's Point of View

"So," Laura says, facing Kyle, "you got a guitar, an' I got a banjo."

The two friends had bought out the instruments a little while ago, after Laura said it wasn't quite a bonfire without music.

"Yeah," Kyle replies. "Yer point?"

"I'm gonna regret this later, but you wanna duel?" she asks with a grin.

Instead of answering, Kyle plucks out a single note on his guitar.

Laura grins, then answers with a higher note, but still the same pitch.

Kyle strums the same note again, and Laura repeats it.

Kyle plucks out a short rhythm, then Laura does the same.

They go back and forth, the simple melodies getting longer each time, until Laura begins tapping her foot, and then they're off, both of them playing nearly the same rhythm at nearly the same time, the sound of the banjo complimenting the low hum of the guitar. As one plays the melody, the other keeps the beat, until they're going back and forth so fast that I can barely keep up, their fingers moving quickly to get the notes out.

Then it's just Laura, her fingers nearly blurry as they move across the strings, plucking out the final set of quick notes before finishing with a smile.

"Does -" Kyle starts to ask.

"Don't even ask," she says with a laugh, My thumb is killin' me."

"How does that work?" Niall asks. Laura hands him the banjo, showing him how to put his hands.

"Ya use yer thumb fer most of it, but you can use yer fingers iff'n yer doin' somethin' real fast," she explains.

"How do your fingers hold up through all that?" I ask, pulling one of her hands over so I can look at it. Kyle moves over to Niall, telling him the different notes that go with the song they just played.

"Strong fingers. That's why I'm a blocker," she replies with a smile. She moves her hand so that our fingers are lined up, comparing the size of our hands.

"Your fingers are really long," I observe. The tips of her fingers nearly reach the last knuckle on mine, most people can't get to the middle one.

"Yeah, they are," Louis mutters, moving over to sit closer to Laura. He pulls her other hand over to stick it against his. When Laura doesn't bat an eyelash at the sudden gesture, I raise an eyebrow.

There's gotta be something going on there.

Later, after the two Dillons have followed Laura into her room for what's probably going to be a dogpile of sleeping bodies, I follow Louis into the bathroom, standing there as he brushes his teeth.

"So, have you figured it out yet?" I ask. He rolls his eyes, then spits out the toothpaste in the sink.

"It's not that easy, Haz," he sighs. "I can't just... I'm still thinking about it."

"Okay. I was just curious," I tell him, not wanting to push too far when he isn't sure. "You are gonna tell me first when you figure it out, right?" He nods with a smile.

"Of course. That's what best friends are for." He smiles. "Although I will warn you, it's probably going to be in the middle of the night because I won't be able to sleep and then I'll have an epiphany or something."

I laugh. "I'll try to remember that when you're waking me up."

Louis' Point of View

"So where are we going?" I ask Saturday afternoon. We've just come from a volleyball tournament, one that Laura's team did really well at, finishing second. Granted, it was a long morning, and the girls were wiped out by the last match, but they still pulled together to keep the score pretty close.

"Food," Laura says as we climb into the truck. "Need food."

Before long we're walking into a restaurant, a few people giving Laura strange looks, probably because he's still in her uniform, a large unzipped hoodie thrown over top to keep her muscles from getting too cold too fast, (Her words, not mine. She says that it makes them sore.) and her boots.

It's an odd combination, I'll admit, but she's pulling it off, weaving through the tables as she follows the hostess to our table.

"Here ya go," the red haired girl says with a smile. "Your server will be out in a moment."

"Thanks," Laura says with a smile as we all slide into the booth, Harry, Laura, and Liam on one side and Niall, me, and Zayn on the other.

"I'd apologize fer the smell, but I ain't sorry," Laura jokes.

"You actually don't smell that bad," Harry tells her.

"Really?" Laura asks. Harry nods, and then Laura's wrapping her arm around his shoulders, pulling his head down to stuff his face in her armpit as she laughs.

"Hey!" Harry protests, trying to shove her off.

Someone clears their throat, and we all turn to see the waiter standing there, looking a bit weirded out.

"Um, good afternoon," he says. "My name is Julian, and I'll be your waiter." He pauses for a second as Laura lets Harry sit up, straightening out his shirt. "Can I start ya'll off with something to drink?"

"I'll have water," Liam says.

"I'll have a water too please," Zayn says.

"I'll take some tea," I say happily when I see it on the menu.

"I'll have some soda," Niall requests. He thinks he's all fancy, he learned the soda thing from Ann. Apparently that's what they call Coke down here.

"I'll take some milk," Harry says with a smile.

"And for you miss?"

Laura looks up quickly, like she forgot he was there.

"Oh, um. Y'got Mountain Dew?"

"Yes."

"I'll have that, please."

"Alright, I'll be right back with your drinks," Julian says with a smile, walking away.

"Hey wait a second," Laura calls. When Julian walks back, she continues. "Make sure 'e gets a hot tea. Not that sweet stuff with th' ice."

Julian nods, then walks away, writing down what she just said.

"What?" I ask, confused.

"Iff'n you just say tea, folks here'll give ya sweet tea without questionin' it. Tastes extra nasty, that shit. Worse'n th' regular stuff," she replies.

So now she knows what kind of tea I like? Either she pays attention really well or I'm really picky and make sure it's obvious.

When our drinks come back, we order our food, and then while we're eating I feel something nudge my foot repeatedly. I ignore it at first, thinking it's just Harry, but when it keeps going, after about five minutes, I look over at Harry, a small glare on my face.

But it isn't Harry that speaks up.

"I swear I ain't playin' footsie with ya, my legs jus' don't fit nowhere," Laura says, putting her hands up.

"Sure you aren't," I joke, narrowing my eyes at her.

"Yes, because that's exactly how I get all th' guys," she replies with a grin.

"That might work though," Niall cuts in. "Like, trip them with your legs and when they wake up from the concussion and they don't remember it, and they think you're some angel that's come to save them or something."

"No!" Laura says dramatically, "They've figured me out! Whatever shall I do?"

"Maybe something else?" Harry suggests.

"But my legs're all I got, what else can I do?" Laura laughs. She does have legs. Long, long legs. Very nice, long, tan legs.

"... jokes work," Harry's telling her. I feel Zayn nudge me with his knee, and I snap back to reality.

"You're staring, mate," he says quietly, not quite looking at me.

I blink, looking down at my plate.

"Thanks."


	42. Chapter 42

Laura's point of View

"Ugh!" I yell after my fifth hit into the net. Nothing is going right today.

"Why don't ya take a breather for a little while?" Rafe says, noticing my frustration. I nod, then walk over to the bench, grabbing my water bottle and sitting down. As I take gulps of Gatorade, I watch the others, trying to figure out what they're doing that I'm not.

"Hey, you alright?" I hear Louis ask as he sits next to me.

"Ehh," I mutter, "I can't get it right today," I complain, burying my face in my hands. "All my hits're goin' in th' net."

"Come on, you're not doing that bad," he says. I feel him set his hand on my shoulder, then pull it back after it slides on my sweat soaked skin. I blindly reach for my towel, handing it to him.

"Thanks."

Out of the corner of my eye, I see him wipe his hand off, and then he drapes the towel over the back of my neck.

"So what do you  _think_  the problem is?" he asks, his voice neutral.

"I dunno! Iff'n I knew I woulda fixed it by now!" I say angrily. " 'M takin' three steps, jumpin' when 'm on my left foot, 'm snappin' my wrist, what else am I doin' wrong?"

He doesn't even flinch, he's so used to seeing me like this. He just sighs, and gets up. Figures. I probably pushed too far this time, and he's gonna leave.

It surprises me when I feel his hands on my wrists, pulling my hands away from my face so he can see my expression.

"Laura, look at me," he says, squatting down so that he's at eye level with me. "You can do this. You know you can." I sigh. I know I usually can, but something's off today. I can't focus. It's like I've got a squirrel's attention span. Two or three seconds, then I'm on to the next thing.

"Hey now. You're an all star. Get your game on. Go play." He leans his forehead on mine, then continues. "Hey now, you're a rock star. Get the show on. Get paid." I smile a little.

"An' all that glitters 's gold?" I ask. He grins.

"Only shooting stars break the mold." My small smile spreads across my face, my mood successfully made better. That song was on the radio while we were driving up here, and I'd been surprised that he knew it.

"Thanks Lou," I say. He lightly punches my arm.

"Don't worry about it. Now go get 'em."

I walk back onto the court, joining the line again, feeling determined to get the hit over the net.

When I'm at the front, on the line, I watch as the ball is tossed, then when it's as high as it will go, I start my approach.

Left,

right, left,

swing,

jump,

snap,

Boom!

When my feet hit the ground, on the opposite side of the net from the ball I just hit, there's a wide grin on my face.

"There you go!" Rafael praises as I walk back to the end of the line.

When we wrap up the practice, because that was the last drill, I walk back over to where my bag is, where Louis is still sitting.

"So, that was pretty good," he says with a grin as I sit down to pull my knee pads off.

"Thanks," I reply.

Louis' Point of View

I'd blown my 'day of thinking' when I said I'd go with Laura to watch her practice, but I think maybe it helped. I know it will sound weird, but even when she was yelling and all frustrated, I thought she looked beautiful. I still wanted to stay close to her, even when it was me she was yelling at.

Even now, as we're driving back to the ranch, and she's all sweaty and gross, she's still the best girl I know.

"Are you even listenin'?" I hear her ask.

I shake my head quickly. "Yeah, yeah, I'm listening," I say in a rush.

She looks over at me, raising an eyebrow. "Really?"

"Really really," I reply.

She smiles, shaking her head, and starts talking again, rambling on about how the team is doing better than they were last year at this time, and how they're learning to work better together.

I sit back in my seat, listening, letting her voice fill my ears.

Zayn's Point of View

"An' I think it's gonna be somethin' fun, but I ain't sure..." Laura rambles while we're running back from getting the mail the next morning.

It's become sort of a usual thing for the two of us. But this is the most she's talked on one of these runs. She won't shut up.

Today it's been all about Rob, and how she's going somewhere tonight and she's really excited about it, because she's almost absolutely certain he's got something planned to surprise her, and even though she hates surprises, she can deal with it if it's something from him.

Did I mention she's excited about it?

"Sorry, 'm probly talkin' yer ear off," she say with a sheepish grin once she realizes I'm not replying. Not that she's giving me a chance to.

"No, you're alright, love," I tell her. I don't mind listening to her ramble, it's actually kind of cute. "I don't mind."

"Ya know, yer a'right," she says, lightly punching my shoulder. It's something I've learned she does when she's having a sort of fond moment. It happens a lot around Louis.

Speaking of Louis, I'm almost ninety nine percent sure that he likes Laura. He won't admit it, but he does. The way he just watches her, without realizing that he does it, or the way they can be just joking around, but he gets this huge smile on his face, it's really something to watch.

When we get back to the bunkhouse, Laura's chattering has slowed down a little, but she's still talking to me as I sit at the counter while she makes breakfast.

"I don't even know what ta wear, he didn't tell me iff'n it was fancy'r not, I should prolly take a shower, my hair looks awful right now."

"Don't we have other stuff to do today?" I ask.

"Yeah, there's a fence row that needs some attention, we're gonna make sure it's not gonna fall apart," she replies quickly, then goes right back into talking about Rob.

I smile. It's going to be a long day.

Laura's Point of View

"Pull harder," I tell Liam as I try to attach the wire to the fence post. He pulls the barbed wire tighter, and I push the metal hook into the wooden post, whacking it with the hammer a couple times. "Okay, you can let go."

"Are we done yet?" Louis asks. He's been doing nothing except laying on the ground, holding the hammer when I'm not using it.

"Not quite," I reply, dropping the hammer on the ground next to him. "There's one more post,  _then_  we're done."

"Thank the lord," he breathes, pretending to cry. "We've been out here all day, I think I'm gonna die."

"Y'ain't gonna die, silly," I laugh, walking to the next post.

When we finish the fence, it's nearly four in the afternoon, and by the time the ponies are unhitched and put in their stalls, it's around four thirty.

As soon as we get into the bunkhouse, I head up to my room, going to take a shower.

Louis' Point of View

When Laura comes back down the stairs, I have to physically hold it up to keep my jaw from dropping. 

She's washed her hair, I can smell the shampoo from here, and left about half of it down, putting the top half into a small braid that runs down her back. She's put on a clean shirt, and tucked it into her jeans, which are the ones that fit her - probably the best out of all her jeans - just perfectly, hugging her thighs just right.

She walks over to the door, grabbing her purse off of the counter, and pulling her boots on.

Then she walks into the kitchen, looking in the fridge.

"There's some leftover tortillas iff'n ya'll wanna make fajitas with 'em, jus' make sure ya reheat th' meat 'fore ya eat it," she says, catching the other lads' attention.

Harry whistles. "Somebody's looking fancy," he says.

"Do I look a'right?" Laura asks, spinning in a small circle. "Is it too much?"

I shake my head almost instantly. "No, you look... very nice," I tell her, not saying what I really want to say. She looks beautiful.

"Thanks," she says, looking down at her feet.

"When are you supposed to be there?" Liam asks.

Laura looks at her phone. "Six," she says. "So I oughta go. Don't break anything." She starts walking to the door, and the lads and I wish her well as she walks out.

After she's gone, they all turn to me.

"What?"

"You want her to  _have fun_?" Harry asks.

"You  _want_  it to go well?" Niall adds.

"Yeah. I'm not gonna say, 'I hope it ends in tears,' I'm not that mean."

"So you don't want it to work out," Zayn assumes.

"Why are you all ganging up on me?" I groan.

It's a few hours later, and we're all still sitting around the table, when Laura gets back.

I hear her truck pull into the driveway, the loud engine cutting out soon after. The driver's door slams shut, and soon her footsteps can be heard on the front steps.

Laura shoves the door open, not stopping to make sure it closes after she walks through it.

She jogs up the stairs, not giving us so much as a glance, and walks into her room, slamming the door closed behind her.

The lads and I share confused looks.

"You think she's alright?" Zayn asks.

"Maybe we should go make sure," Liam suggests.

We all stand from the table, then Niall says, "maybe not all of us though. She's gonna want just one or two."

He's right. She doesn't like being around very many people when she's upset. She doesn't like being around people at all actually.

"So who goes?" Harry questions.

"I think Louis should. He's closest to her. She knows him the best," Zayn answers.

"Wait, me?" I ask. "Why me?"

"You know her the best out of all of us. You might know what to do better than we would," Harry says. 

"Alright... I'll go." Sacrifice me because I know her the best, I see how it is.

I walk up the stairs, then to her door. I hesitate for a second, then knock.

"Go 'way."

"Laura, it's me. I just wanna make sure you're okay."

" 'M fine, go 'way." Her voice cracks in the middle of her sentence, making me believe that she might be crying.

"Please Laura." I don't want to walk away if she's crying. I'll feel awful afterward.

"Fine. Come in."

I open the door just enough to slide in, then close it once I'm through.

The curtain separating her bed from the rest of her room is pulled across. I assume she's behind it, sitting on her bed.

As I step closer, I hear sniffling.

"Laura?" I ask again as I pull back the barrier.

There's a girl sitting on the bed who looks like Laura, but she doesn't have the bright sparkling eyes or proud posture like Laura does. Her eyes are red and puffy as she looks sadly up at me, her shoulders and back are slumped as tears run down her cheeks. A box of tissues sits in front of her, already half empty, the used tissues scattered over top of the blanket on her bed.

"Oh Laura..." I quickly crawl over to her, pulling her onto my lap and wrapping my arms around her. She fights back at first, for only a second or two, before giving in, putting her face in my shoulder and letting me hold her as she cries.

What happened? Laura never cries. This must be something huge to have made her this upset.

I rock her back and forth, stroking her hair as sobs rack through her body. My shirt is tightly fisted in her hands, and I tighten my arms around her.

"Shh... it's alright, I'm right here." My words, meant to help, only make her cry harder.

I hate this. I hate hearing her cry. I don't know if it's because it's  _Laura_  crying or because I'm not used to this. It's been forever since I've been around a girl that was actually crying, and even then, I wasn't the one holding her. I'm not sure if I'm helping or just making it worse. Hopefully I'm helping.

"Shh... I'm right here.... 'S okay," I say as I rub her back.

"No s'not..." she mumbles, hiccuping.

"What's wrong? What happened?" I ask softly. This throws her into another round of sobbing, each and every one tearing through me. Come on, tell me what's wrong so I can make it better...

"Easy... Shh... I got you, I'm right here."

When she's back to quiet sniffles and hiccups, I try again.

"Do you wanna tell me what happened?" I ask even softer than before.

"Fuckin' Ashley. Why's it always Ashley? Why not me?" she cries, punching my chest half heartedly.

"What do you mean, love?" I ask, wincing when a lone sob racks through her.

"Rob. Th' whole thing was fer Ashley. He likes  _her_ , not me. Why's it never me?"

She starts crying again, despite my efforts to keep her calmed down. In the entire twenty or so minutes that I've been in here with her crying, I have decided that I absolutely hate it when she cries, and I don't ever want her to cry again.

If I run into Rob, I swear I'm gonna beat him so hard he won't be able to walk. I'm not sure where this anger is coming from right now, but I don't like it. I hate it. I hate when Laura cries. I really want to hit something right now, but I can't. I have to worry about Laura first.

I wait until she's quieter again, then ask, "is there anything I can do?" I will literally do anything to get her to stop crying. When she nods, I look down at her, waiting for her to tell me what she wants.

"Jus' hold me," she says, snuggling closer. I nod and lean my head on her shoulder, trying to get as close to her as possible. We sit like that for a long time, letting Laura get calmed down.

"So did you know that I was drunk once and I thought our stylist's daughter was Niall?" I ask randomly after a few minutes.

"What?" she sniffles.

"Yep. I said, 'don't worry Niall, you'll grow up someday'."

I feel her laugh a little bit, then sniffle again.

"And this other time, we went to a restaurant and the waiter had to google my birthday 'cause he didn't believe I was old enough to drink."

This makes her laugh a little more, and I smile.

"And there was this other time when my mum was pregnant, and I asked her why she ate the baby, 'cause it was in her stomach."

"What're you even talkin' bout?" she asks confusedly.

"Why did the mushroom go to the party?"

"Louis," she starts.

"Come on, Laura, you know you wanna know." She sighs.

"Why'd th' mushroom go ta th' party?"

"Cause he was a fungi."

That's all it takes.

She bursts into laughter, all traces of sadness gone. She throws her head back, laughing at my joke that wasn't really all that funny. But I'm not complaining, it made her happy again.

"What?" she asks, noticing me staring at her. I shake my head, smiling.

"Do you feel better?" I ask. She nods.

"Thanks."

She smiles for a minute, then asks, "You wanna go get th' can 'o frostin' outta th' fridge?"

"Sure," I answer, moving toward the door. "How many spoons should I get?"

She sighs, still smiling. "Better grab two..."

I run down the stairs and to the fridge, grabbing the frosting and heading back up the stairs after getting two spoons from the drawer.

I close the door to her room once I'm inside, then bring the frosting over to her bed, sitting next to her and handing her the can and a spoon.

"Thank you," she says with a small sniffle. She opens the can, then dips her spoon inside, digging out a giant glob of frosting, which she then puts in her mouth, handing the can to me.

We pass it back and forth for a few minutes, until Laura sighs.

"Ya know, sometimes I think 'm gonna jus' give up."

I raise an eyebrow. "Whaddya mean?"

"Sometimes I think it's impossible. I can't find 'im."

I turn to look at her, handing the now half-empty can of frosting to her. "Who?"

"Mr. Right."

Oh. This is gonna be one of  _those_  conversations. Goody. I'm either  _so_  friend-zoned that she thinks it's fine to talk to me about this or she really trusts me and thinks I'll be able to help her.

"What makes you think that?" I ask.

"Ev'ry guy I like either don't like me or leaves th' first chance 'e gets," she says sadly, sticking another spoonful of frosting in her mouth.

"Really? Every single one?" There has to be at least one that hasn't been like that.

"Well, not Paul. But that'n didn't end th' best either," she admits.

"See? There's one," I say. She gives me a look, her spoon sticking out of her mouth. "What?"

"I'd rather not say that'n was a good thing," she says quietly, looking down.

"Why not? What happened?"

She laughs dryly. "He tried ta rape me." I feel my eyes go wide.

"What?" I ask in shock.

"Yeah. He took me out one time, went fer a drive like we always did, an' ended up sittin' in 'is truck bed. He kissed me, but- " she pauses, taking a deep breath, " 'E didn't wanna stop there."

I'm not sure what to say. I didn't expect her to say something like that. I thought maybe they had a big fight or something, not... that.

That's why she lashed out like she did when he pulled her over.

"Wow," is all I can think of to say.

"Yep," she replies, pressing her lips into a firm line.

"How... how did you...?" I start, wanting to know how she got away.

"Kicked 'is ass, then I told 'im ta drive me home. Never spoke after that." Wow. She's tough.

"So," I try after a moment, attempting to change the subject, "what do you think he's like?"

Now it's her turn to ask, "who?"

"Your Mr. Right or whatever you said."

"Oh," she says, looking surprised, as if she didn't expect me to ask something like that. "Well, I'd like 'im taller'n me, not too tall though. 'E's gotta be funny, Yankee's gotta like 'im."

"What? Your dog has to approve of him?" She nods seriously, as if its a normal thing.

"Yeah, iff'n my dog don't like somebody, there's somethin' wrong with 'em."

I nod. That almost makes sense.

"An' he's gotta be nice. But not too nice. Can't just gimme whatever I want. 'E's gotta put up a fight once in awhile."

"Uh huh.."

"He must be swift as a coursing river. With all th' force of a great typhoon," she giggles.

"With all the strength of a raging fire?" I ask. She nods.

"Mysterious as th' dark side of th' moon!" she replies. She laughs a little more, then yawns.

"Sleepy?" I ask. She nods. "Then go to sleep." Crying always makes me sleepy.

"Okay," she says, curling up on a pillow. She looks up at me, then sticks an arm out, making grabby hands. "Cuddle."

I smile, because who can say no to a girl who's sleepy? I move over to her, letting Laura sort of attach herself to me, her long arms and legs going everywhere before she's comfy, and then she's asleep, breathing quietly.

About an hour later, I'm walking down the stairs, carrying the empty can of frosting and the two spoons to the kitchen.

"So what was wrong?" I hear someone quietly ask. I turn to see all the lads sitting at the kitchen table.

"Rob," I reply simply. Suddenly I'm angry again, out of nowhere. "I'm gonna kill him."

"Whoa, easy," Liam says. "What happened?"

"You know how she was going to go help him with something?" I ask, walking over and sitting at the table with them.

"Yeah, she told me about it this morning," Zayn says. "She seemed really excited."

"I think she thought it was, like, a date," I tell them. "And when she got there, she figured out it was for Ashley. And he just wanted Laura to help with it."

"Oh, that's awful," Liam says sympathetically.

"Yeah. And do you think he told her that before today?" I shake my head. "Nope."

"Is she okay?" Niall asks. I nod.

"I think she'll be alright. Might be a little out of it for a while. She's asleep right now."

"Louis," I hear a soft voice call. My head turns and I see a sleepy Laura coming down the stairs, a blanket half wrapped around her shoulders, dragging on the floor behind her.

Well, she  _was_  asleep when I left.

"What, love?" I ask.

"You left," she says with a pout, rubbing her eye with her fist.

"I was coming right back," I assure her.

"Okay," she replies quietly, turning around.

I watch her go back up the steps, until she's back in her room. When I turn back to the lads, they're all smirking at me.

"What?"

"She's got you so whipped," Zayn says with a shake of his head.

"She does not," I protest.

"Louis," Laura's voice calls.

I sigh, then stand up. "Coming," I call back. Then I turn to the lads. "Not whipped. Just being nice. Because I'm a nice person. And we're friends. That's it."

That's what I keep telling myself, but when I walk back through the door and see Laura burrowed under all the blankets, only her face sticking out, and she reaches for me, I can't stop the weird taste in my mouth at the thought.


	43. Chapter 43

Louis’ Point of View

When I wake up, Laura’s gone. I’m still in her room, under the blankets on her bed, but she’s not there. I sit up, then look around. She’s not anywhere in her room either. 

When she finally fell asleep last night, after talking my ear off about something that I can’t really remember, she was still a little sad and mopey, so I’m a little worried about where she might have gotten off to while I was asleep. 

“Laura?” I call. When I don’t hear her answer, I swing my feet onto the floor, and set off to look for her. 

She isn’t in the kitchen, but it is only six or so in the morning. She wouldn't be making breakfast this early.

Zayn’s still in his room, so she isn’t out running. She always runs with Zayn in the morning. 

I pass the bathroom, and hear a small sniffle through the closed door, which catches my attention. 

“Laura?”

“What?” she answers. 

“Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she answers quickly, followed by a sniffle. “ ‘M fine. Jus' got a stuffy nose.”

“Are you sure?” It doesn’t sound like she’s fine. It sounds like she’s crying or something, the way she’s sniffling. 

“Yes, ’m fine - ow, shit!”

“Laura?”

“ ’m fine, leave me alone,” she says. “Got my hair caught on somethin’.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Can’t a girl take a shit in peace?” she asks angrily. Oh. 

“Okay, leaving now,” I say quietly, turning away and going back up the stairs. 

About five or so minutes later, Laura walks in, climbing back under the covers. I reach over and grab her arm, looking at it. 

“What’re y’doin’?” she asks confusedly. 

“Looking,” I reply. When I finish looking at that arm, I reach for her other arm, doing the same thing. 

“I don’t cut, Louis,” she says quietly. I look up at her. “I might be sad, but I don’t cut,” she repeats. She must take my silence as disbelief, because next she asks, “Y’wanna see my legs? There ain’t nothin’ there ‘sides stretch marks.”

“No, that's… that's okay. I believe you,” I say. She gives me a small smile.

We don’t say much after that, but Laura moves closer, snuggling up to me before we both fall back asleep.

Laura’s Point of View

I’m sitting on the counter in the kitchen, sometime after I’ve finished the breakfast dishes, eating my way through a package of Oreos when Zayn walks in. 

“Hey,” he says, walking over to me. 

“Hey,” I reply, not bothering to keep the sad tone out of my voice. 

“Are you alright?” he asks.

“Yeah. Still alive. Still movin’ ‘round, ‘m fine.”

“No, like, are you  _alright_?” The way he says it makes me look up at him.

He’s standing right in front of me, looking at me curiously. 

“Gettin’ there,” I reply, managing a small smile.

He nods, as if he’s alright with that answer, then looks down at his hands.

There’s a small silence, until I ask, “whaddya want?”

He looks back up at me, shaking his head. “Nothing, I was just wondering how you were.”

I tilt my head to one side.

“That’s awful nice ta say, but it ain’t nice ta lie.”

He grins, like he knew I’d be able to tell the difference. I scoot a little to one side, then pat the counter top next to me. 

“Pop a squat.” 

Zayn smiles, then hops up next to me, swinging his legs back and forth for a little while. 

“Wanna Oreo?” I offer. He shakes his head. “Well, what do ya want?” 

He takes a deep breath, then sighs. “I wanna try something.”

I raise an eyebrow. “Is it gonna kill anyone?”

“Probably not.”

“Break things?”

“Nah.”

“Cause me ta lose my Oreos?”

“Nope.”

“Then yer prolly fine,” I tell him. “Jus’ go fer it.”

He grins. “If you say so. I just wanted to make sure it was okay first.”

He starts to lean closer, moving his face toward me, until his lips are pressed against mine. 

I don’t object, but I’m not sure how I feel about this. For one thing, he’s being way too soft about it, like he’s afraid to break me. But I suppose that’s probably a good thing. He’s not just shoving me over and doing whatever he wants. Testing the waters first.

I feel a soft hand in my hair, pushing it back from my face. No one’s done that before. It’s always been pulling the hair first chance they got.

He's pretty good at this kissing stuff. Slow, but not slow enough to make me want to fall asleep. He's obviously familiar with chapstick, because his lips aren't rough and chapped or anything. They're rather soft as they move against mine.

“Hey, Zayn, I wa - HOLY SHIT!” 

A loud yell makes us pull apart, rather slowly considering how loud and unexpected the interruption was. I turn toward the doorway and see Louis standing there, a weird, almost undecipherable look on his face. 

“What?” Zayn asks, as calm as can be. 

“I was gonna... um... show you something, but… if you’re busy… it can wait,” Louis mumbles, looking down at the floor.

Zayn looks over at me. “Do you mind?”

I shake my head, and Zayn turns back to Louis. 

“I’ll be there in a couple minutes,” he says with a smile. 

Louis nods, then turns around, trudging back upstairs to his room. 

“So,” I start as soon as the door shuts, “is this gonna become a regular thing? ‘Cause no offense, but y’ain’t exactly my type.” 

Zayn shakes his head with a grin. 

“No, I just wanted to test something.”

“Mmmhmm. An' what are th' results of yer experimentin'?”

He grins again. “You’re a good kisser.”

“So’re you. But yer still skinny,” I reply with a grin of my own. Zayn just laughs. 

“I can’t think of anything to say to that. But was that okay?”

“Yeah. I guess. This 'as jus' a one time thing though?” I just want to make sure he’s not wanting us to be a thing. Nothing against him, but I’m not in the mood for a boyfriend right now. 

He nods again. “Yeah. Just one time. That’s it.” 

He looks up the steps for a second, then asks, “D’you wanna come see whatever it is?”

“Nah. I 'as gonna head over ta Nani’s anyway. I’ll be back later,” I reply, hopping off of the counter and walking over to the door. 

“Okay. See you.”

Zayn’s Point of View

I walk into Louis’ room, and see him sitting on his bed, glaring at the floor. The rest of the lads are there too, looking a bit grumpy.

“Hey, are you okay mate?” I ask. Louis looks up at me like I’ve just caught him doing something illegal. 

“What was that?” Louis asks as I take a seat in the chair opposite him.

“What was what?” I reply, answering his question with one of my own. 

“With Laura.” I shrug. 

“We just kissed. That was it.”

"What?  _You kissed Laura?_ " Harry asks, his eyes wide. I nod.

“Why?” Louis asks. He almost looks hurt, like he thought I’d say something different, that he didn’t really see what he thought he saw. 

“Um, why does it matter?” I ask. I know why it matters, I just want him to tell me why it matters. To tell himself why it matters. Admit it out loud.

“Because, you know how… how it is…” Louis trails off, not quite explaining. 

“How it is with  _what?”_  Niall asks, pressing further. I give him a silent nod when he glances over at me. This is going exactly how I hoped it would. 

“With me and… and Laura.”

“What  _about_  you and Laura?” Liam asks, catching on to what we’re doing and acting clueless. 

“You know,” Louis starts, looking down at his feet, mumbling something.

“What?” I ask, leaning a little closer to hear him better. 

“I like her. I thought you knew that,” he says quietly, looking up at the rest of us. 

“I had an idea, but you never quite made it clear,” I reply, sitting back. 

“Well, now you know, so… yeah.”

“What are you trying to say?” I ask, pushing just a little farther.

“I like her,” he says, more strongly than before. “So don’t kiss her,” he adds, mumbling something afterward.

“What?” Harry asks with a grin. 

“She’s mine!” Louis shouts, looking a bit flustered, but I just grin wider. 

He doesn’t know it, but someday he’ll thank us for this. 

Laura’s Point of View

When I get to Nani’s, she sees the look on my face and immediately shoos Papi out the door, pulling me over to the kitchen table and making some lemonade. 

“doisdiahina digotlvnv nihi uwedolisdi?” (What is this that makes you sad?) she asks, sitting down across from me. 

“awina,” (A young man.) I answer.

“nulistanvgi?” (What happened?) she questions.

I take a deep breath. Strangely, I don’t feel like crying today.

“atsvyai nadvne kla ha gvgeyui aya,” (He does not love me.) I reply, looking down at my hands. 

“nihi hnadvga kla ha igayelisdi tsuluquadinvdi,” (You do not seem upset.) she says confusedly. 

“tla yigoliga,” (I don’t understand.) I reply. “nasgi nadvne atsisonvnv galohisdi yv nelisv nasgi yadaidisi.” (It doesn’t hurt the way I thought it would.)

“aseyigi…” (Maybe…) she starts. She reaches across the table to grasp my hand in hers. “aseyigi nasgi kla ha udohiyunasgi,” (Maybe it wasn’t real.) she says after a moment. 

I furrow my eyebrows. “tla yigoliga.” (I don’t understand.)

She frowns for a moment, trying to figure out how to explain what she means in a way I can understand. 

“aseyigi atsvyai kla ha nihi saquu,” (Maybe he was not your one.) she says after a bit. 

I nod. That makes sense to me. It's always been part of the Cherokee belief that each person has 'their one' that they're supposed to be with. Kind of like a soulmate, but a little different. I've heard that since I was little. But I do have one question. 

“hilago yv awadvdi nasgiasgaya? hatlvno yv hagata?” (How do I find him? Where do I look?) I ask. 

“yv yelique kla ha alisdedvhvgi nihi Lomasi,” (I can not help you, pretty flower.) she says, somewhat sadly. “nihi uha awadvdi astvyai tsvsa.” (You must find him yourself.)

I nod, knowing she can’t really help me any more. 

We talk for a little while longer, about random things, until she asks about Louis.

“nadvne atsvyai adahnalvsdodi nihi?” (Does he irritate you?) 

I grin. “kla ha igaiquuyinigalisdi udalulv.” (not as much as before.)

She smiles, and opens her mouth like she’s going to say something, but she never says it, changing the subject instead. 

“nihi e do di wili  _kla ha_  ganulv awisvnv,” (Your grandfather will  _not_  weed the garden.) she says. “kla iyusdiyadvhna hilago utsati yv adadvdodi.” (No matter how much I ask.)

I smile. Papi’s always been stubborn about gardening. 

“tsadvnvisdisgo alisdelvdi?” (Do you want help?) I ask. 

She just smiles, like she knew I’d offer, and we both go outside to the garden.

Liam’s Point of View

“Where have you been?” Louis asks when Laura walks back through the door nearly four hours after she left. 

“At Nani’s,” she replies, plopping down on the couch. 

“What’d you do to your knees?” Harry asks once he sees her jeans, which are covered in dirt.

“We was pullin’ weeds,” Laura answers. 

“That sounds fun…” Niall says sarcastically.

“It wasn’t,” Laura laughs. “But it gives ya time ta think, that’s always good.”

“What would you think about while pulling weeds?” I ask.

“Stuff. Figured out some important things,” she replies. 

"Are we gonna do anything work related today?” Louis asks, poking her side. 

“Prolly not,” she replies. “We gotta go ta town later. Need some stuff.”

“What for?” 

“Team’s comin’ over Friday,” Laura says. “Gonna stay th’ night ‘fore th’ tournament. An’ we need stuff fer th’ drive next week.”

“Drive?” Louis asks. “Where are we driving to?”

Laura answers with a laugh. “Not that kinda drive silly. Like a cattle drive. Goin’ out ta th’ property line an’ bringin’ back th’ cattle that’re up there.”

“How far is it?” Zayn asks. 

“I dunno. But it takes ‘bout a week ‘n a half ta get there ‘n back.”

“Are we all going?” I ask. 

Laura nods. “Yeah. Gonna need all of ya.”

Louis’ Point of View

She’s sitting next to me. Like, her leg is touching mine. And she isn’t really paying attention to it, because she’s watching the road. I think I’m gonna die. Why does this feeling wait until right now to get really intense?

It’s because I said out loud that I like her, isn’t it? That’s why. I admitted it out loud, so now I’m worried that she’ll figure it out, and I don’t know if that’s a good thing or a bad thing. 

I do think she knows something’s up though. She’s glanced over her more than usual in the last ten seconds. Maybe she’s… oh wait, she was checking to make sure the road was clear so she could drive across. Overreacting. I’m getting good at it. 

When we get to the store, I’m not much better at controlling my overreacting-ness. I’m worried that every single thing that I do is weird, it’s like I’ve forgotten how to act normal. 

And of course the rest of the lads split off into two groups, leaving me with Laura.

I’m not complaining, I just would have liked some sort of warning. Though I should have seen it coming. 

“So what kind of candy d’ya wanna get?” is the first thing she asks me as I follow her down a few of the aisles.

“I thought we were here for supplies or something like that,” I answer. 

“Candy’s ‘n important part of a person’s diet,” she replies. “Gotta have some. At least fer Friday. Th’ girls like eatin’ junk food th’ night ‘fore a tourney.”

“Really?” She nods.

“Yeah. I keep tellin’ ‘em that they’re settin’ themselves up fer a bad mornin’ but they always seem jus’ fine with it th’ next day. We do make sure ta eat a good supper first though. That might make a difference,” she says, rambling a little. “So, jelly beans or gummy bears?”

I raise an eyebrow as I look at the two bags she holds in her hands. 

“Better think hard. This ‘s a life ‘r death choice,” she says, being dramatic. 

Okay, which one…

“Both,” I answer. She grins. 

“Smart choice.” 

Harry’s Point of View

“And then she said…” 

I’m walking down the chip aisle with Niall, and he won’t shut up about Ann. 

Hey, Aisle rhymes with Niall. That’s neat.

“Are you even listening?” 

I nod. “Yeah, course I am. It’s the fourth time you’ve told me about it, but yeah, I love hearing about you and Ann.”

“Oh,” he says, his face turning a bit redder. “Sorry, mate.”

I shrug. “It’s alright. I don’t mind. You do talk about her a lot though.” 

“I can’t help it,” he admits. “I like her.” 

“Everybody just likes everybody. Liam likes Erica, you like Ann, Louis likes Laura. Who’s next?” I wonder aloud. 


	44. Chapter 44

Louis’ Point of View

“Get up!” is the first thing I hear when I wake up. 

Someone’s jumping on my bed, jostling me around. 

“Go ‘way,” I say grumpily, turning over to go back to sleep. 

“No, get up!” Laura says, jumping on me. “We gotta go!” 

“Go where?” I ask. 

“Huntin’. You said ya wanted ta go. Today’s a good day fer it, c’mon.”

I peek out from under my blanket to look at the clock on the nightstand. 

“It’s four in the morning, Laura,” I groan. The rest of the lads are probably peacefully asleep, not being tortured by the girl they recently figured out that they like.

It's worse than it sounds, trust me. I was having a good dream.

“That’s why we gotta go! Shoulda been out there a’ready. But you wouldn’t wake up!” she says. 

I pull the blanket down to look at her, probably with a glare on my face, but when I see her, I nearly scream. A manly scream, of course.

“What the hell is on your face?” I ask in terror. She looks twice as dark as she normally does, splotches of green and brown smeared everywhere on her skin. It looks like she’s got it on her face and down her neck and shoulders, maybe even down her arms. 

“Camouflage. Keeps th’ deer from seein’ ya as well. Ya want some?” 

She just looks so excited, but I’m so sleepy. It’s way too early to be awake.  

“Sure, I guess,” I say groggily, starting to sit up. I rub my eyes with the backs of my hands, stretching my tired limbs. 

“Iff’n yer sleepy, ya don’t haveta come,” Laura says. I look over toward the sound of her voice to see her sitting, bright eyed, against the headboard of my bed, waiting for me. 

I shake my head. “No, I’ll go. I just didn’t think you’d wake me up this early.”

“Oh,” she says. “It’s easier ta get out there real early. Then there’s less noise ta scare th’ deer off when they’re movin’ ‘round.”

“Deer? Isn’t that a little big?” Do we have to carry it back if we get one?

Laura shakes her head, watching as I climb out of bed, walking over to pull some clean clothes from my suitcase. 

“Nah, it ain’t too bad. Jus’ make sure ya wear somethin’ yer okay with gettin’ blood on,” she replies. 

“Blood?” I ask. 

She nods. “Yeah. Ya kill somethin’, there’s us’ly blood involved.”

“Are we gonna have to carry it back?”

“Nah, we’re takin’ horses. Shouldn't be too bad.”

I pull out a shirt that’s old, but not too worn out, and a clean pair of jeans. I move to pull my boxers off and change into clean ones, and then I remember that Laura’s still here. 

“Um… do you mind?” I ask, my face heating up. 

“Oh, sorry!” Laura says, scrambling off of the bed and going out the door. “I’ll um… be in th’ kitchen.”

By the time I get dressed and go downstairs, it’s been another ten or so minutes. 

Laura is sitting on the table when I walk down the stairs, a half-eaten bagel in her hand and a small jar of paint next to her. 

“You’re gonna make my face look like that?” I ask. 

She shrugs. “Iff’n ya want. Makes it harder fer stuff ta see ya.”

I shrug. “Why not?” Laura smiles, setting her bagel down on the table. 

“C’mere then.”

I walk over to her, standing in front of where she sits, and she grabs the paint, sticking her thumb into it. 

“ ‘S gonna be cold,” she warns, then she swipes her thumb across my cheek. She wasn’t kidding, I think to myself as I jump at the cold feeling on my face. “Told ya,” Laura giggles. 

“I didn’t think it was gonna be  _that_  cold,” I defend myself. “Do you keep it in the  _freezer_  or something?”

“Nope. Jus’ up on th’ shelf,” Laura replies, making another line across my forehead. “Feel like that monkey guy from th’ Lion King,” she giggle, making another line on my forehead. “Simbaaa.”

I chuckle. “Remember who you are,” I say with a laugh.  

After Laura’s turned my face into a mess of green and brown, we walk out into the dark yard, going over to the stables, Laura carrying a large leather bag over her shoulder. When I walk into my horse’s stall, he looks up sleepily at me. 

“I know, bud. It’s too early for this,” I tell him. “C’mon, you gotta get up.”

He makes a sound like sigh, then climbs to his feet, shaking the straw from his back. I reach over to pull the halter off of his head, and he shoves at my shoulder with his nose. 

“I know, I know.” I pull half of an apple out of my pocket, holding it out to him. “Does this help?”

His black nose moves over my hand, sniffing at what I’m holding before eating it off my palm, nickering his thanks. 

“You’re welcome,” I tell him. While he’s occupied, I go get the saddle, slinging it over his back and tightening the cinch before grabbing the bridle off of it’s hook and bringing it over to his head. 

“I know you don’t like this part, but I’ll try not to hit your teeth this time,” I say quietly. The past few times I’ve been in a hurry, and I may have accidentally knocked the bit against his teeth a couple times. His dark eyes look at me skeptically, or at least that’s what it feels like, as I hold the bit in my hand, lifting the top of the bridle over his ears as I guide the metal bar into his mouth. 

“There. No teeth banging this time,” I say proudly as I buckle the chin strap. He nudges me with his nose again, and I smile. “Let’s go, before Laura says something else about how slow I am today.” 

I yawn as I lead him out of his stall, and he does the same soon after. 

“See what I mean?” I ask Laura, motioning to Frodo, “it’s too early for this.”

“C’mon, ya sissy. Iff’n we hurry, we can watch th’ sun come up,” she says, climbing up into Rebel’s saddle, leaning forward to rest her arms on the saddle horn in front of her. “It’s been real purdy, past couple days.”

I hop up into my saddle. “Then let’s go.” 

We ride out of the yard, and into the fields, keeping the horses at a walk. Before long, I see the first few streaks of red-gold start to peek into the big, dark, open sky. soon the expanse is a bright, red-orange, the clouds making streaks of white against the bright colors. It is really pretty.

“How far is it?” I ask.

“Ta where we’re stoppin’?” Laura asks. I nod. “It ain’t too far. Jus’ over ta that buncha trees.” She points toward a large group of trees about half a mile, I think, from where we are. 

We keep our steady pace, making our way over the open field, and it seems like we’re the only two people here. Like, it makes it seem like we’re the only ones around for miles, even though if I turned around, I could still see the ranch where everyone else is. 

I could get used to this. Seemingly endless skies, big, open fields, beautiful sunrises, and Laura. I could get used to being around her every morning. I kind of am used to it, but not like this. I could get used to her waking me up every morning, talking to each other at breakfast, just being around her all the time. That would be nice. 

Slow down, Louis. You’re leaving, remember? You’re just here long enough to earn enough money to get home, then you’re gone. That’s it. 

Laura doesn’t deserve that. Someone who’s not going to be right there for her. Millions of miles between us. 

That’s depressing to think about, isn’t it? I don’t want to be depressing. 

I’ll just enjoy the time I’ve got with her while I’ve got it. That’s what I’ll do. 

When we get to the small grove of trees, we tie the horses to some trees, taking their saddles off. Then we walk a little ways to a spot where the grass is taller, and Laura sets her bag down behind a tree that’s laying on the ground. 

“How long are we staying out here?” I ask quietly. 

“Depends. Iff’n there’s a buck within th’ first hour ‘r two, might be back ‘fore lunch. Could be a while though,” Laura answers as she stretches out on the ground, laying on her stomach. “So ya might ‘s well get comfy,” she adds, patting the ground next to her. 

I smile, then lay down on my stomach next to her, the grass cold against my skin. 

We’re in a shady spot, out of sight of anything that might walk by, yet we can see everything that moves.

We lay there for a while, watching as the sun moves higher into the sky. Laura silently pulls things out of her bag, then starts putting her bow together, fitting the pieces into place without really watching what her hands are doing, because she’s got her eyes on the edge of the treeline, looking for any movement. 

When she’s finished, she leans the bow against the log, then pulls out her bundle of arrows, setting them next to the bow. 

“So, how long does this usually take?” I ask. “Like, how long until something shows up?”

“Depends,” she answers. “Gotta be quiet.”

A lot just  _depends_ , doesn’t it?

I start to say something, but Laura holds up a hand, looking intently at something across the small clearing. 

“What?” I ask as quietly as I can.

“Shh!” she says, reaching for her bow and pulling an arrow from the bundle.

She stands slowly, making almost no noise at all. Then she lifts the bow, aiming it for a moment before she lets the arrow fly with a soft 'twang'. 

I hear a 'thunk', followed by a strange noise, and Laura drops back onto her stomach, lying quietly on the ground. 

“Yes!” she says, her voice shaky. I can feel her moving next to me, her whole body nearly vibrating. 

“Laura? Are you alright?”

She turns to look at me. 

“ ’M fine,” she answers. “Why?” 

Her eyes are wide, the pupils blown, her voice is quaky, and she won’t stop shaking. 

“Are you  _high_?” I ask, concerned. She  _did_  have some time to herself before we came out here...

“Nah, jus’ excited.”

“You’re shaking, Laura.”

“No I ain’t. You is,” she says, a wide grin on her face. She moves so that she’s on her hands and knees, looking over the top of the grass at the deer. 

“Holy  _shit_.” 

"What? Is it dead?"

"Yeah, it's dead a'right," she says as she lays flat on the ground again. "Holy shit."

"What?" 

"It's huge," she says as she looks over at me, her eyes wild. "Biggest buck I ever saw." She looks over the grass again. "Holy shit."

"What's the big deal?" 

"Don't know till ya do it yerself," she answers. "Been trackin' this'n fer  _years_. Holy shit."

"Yeah, you've said that already," I tell her.

"Sorry. Jus' excited," she says, the wide grin still on her face. She stands up again, pulling a large knife from the inside of her boot. “C’mon.”

I stand, following her as she makes her way across the small clearing, looking around at the tall trees that surround us. 

This is a really pretty place. 

“What are you gonna do?” I ask.

“Gotta skin it,” Laura replies. “Get th’ guts an’ stuff out so there’s less ta carry back.”

“Oh.” I was hoping I wouldn’t have to see that part. 

You can do this, Louis. You’re a man, you can handle a little blood. 

We step over to the deer, which is pretty big. It would probably be at least up to my shoulder if it were standing. But it’s not standing, obviously, because of the arrow that’s sticking out of it’s side. 

I hear the small click of a phone camera, and look over at Laura. 

“Like takin’ pictures of ‘em ‘fore I get 'em all bloody,” she explains, putting her phone back into her pocket. She steps closer, reaching for the arrow, and tugs on it. But it doesn’t move. 

Laura huffs, then puts a foot on the deer's shoulder, pulling harder on the arrow until it slides out, the end of it covered in blood. It doesn’t seem to bother Laura, and she wipes it off on her jeans before sticking it into the ground and kneeling by the deer’s head. 

“Y’ain’t gonna get squeamish on me, are ya?” she asks, looking up at me. 

I shake my head. “No, I’m fine,” I lie. 

Laura raises an eyebrow with a smirk. “A’right.” 

Then she drags her knife across the animal’s throat, letting it’s blood flow out and onto the ground. To avoid getting too grossed out, I’m watching Laura instead of the deer, so when it twitches and one of it’s legs nudges my foot, I jump.

“Holy shit!” I exclaim.

“You a’right?” Laura asks calmly. 

“It moved!”

“Yeah, it does that. After death twitches,” Laura explains. “Kinda freaky, ain’t it?”

“Kinda?” It’s fucking scary, that’s what it is. And she’s just sitting there, watching as the blood drains out of the cut she’s made. 

“You wanna help?” she asks, looking up at me again. 

I shake my head. “No thanks, you look like you know what you’re doing.”

Laura grins. “Done it a few times a’fore. Cuttin’ it open ’s th’ hard part. Gotta do it jus’ right.” 

She turns back to the deer, and wipes her knife on her jeans before bringing it up to the skin of it’s stomach. 

“You wanna go get that bag?” she asks as she starts cutting through the hide. “Might be easier ta jus’ fill it up here.”

“Sure.” I will gladly go somewhere else while you’re cutting things open. Less blood and gore for me. 

When I get back, Laura’s reaching up under the skin, pulling something out. 

“What are you…?” I ask.

She turns around, holding a large, bloody lump of something in her hand, which she tosses off to the side. 

“Pullin' guts out,” she replies calmly. Then she frowns. “You a’right?” 

I nod, feeling a little lightheaded. She raises an eyebrow, and for a second I’m scared she’s gonna call me out on my small lie. But she doesn’t say anything, turning back to the deer and continuing to pull things out of it. I don’t watch, I actually move a little farther away, trying to think about something other than all the goriness that’s happening not too far away from me. 

It’s not even the blood that’s bugging me, it’s the smell. It’s getting all up in my nose and messing with my head, blurring my vision and… messing with my head. I can’t see straight. 

“Louis?” I hear Laura ask. She sounds concerned, but her voice sounds far away, like she’s talking through water or something. 

I see a flash of white, and then everything goes black. 

“Wake up, come on…” I hear someone say. “Please don’t be dead.”

I pry my eyes open slowly, blinking in the sunshine. 

Then there’s a shadow over me, pieces of hair tickling my face. 

“Yer alive!” Laura says with a bright smile. 

“What happened?” I ask. I wasn’t laying on the ground, I was standing up, wasn’t I?

“ ‘M thinkin’ ya passed out,” Laura replies, putting a hand on my forehead. “One second you was up an’ talkin’, then th’ next ya went down. Scared me.”

“I don’t even remember it,” I say slowly, trying to sit up. Laura stops me with a hand on my chest.

“Uh uh. Wait a lil’ bit ‘fore ya get up. Might mess with yer head,” she says, gently pressing me back down. I relax, doing what she says, and she moves to lay on her back next to me. “So who is she?” 

“What?” I ask. What is she talking about?

“That girl ya kept muttering about. You talk in yer sleep once ‘n a while too,” she says, looking over at me. “Ya say she’s perdy an’ stuff.”

I talk about Laura in my sleep?  _Shit_. I have to stop spending the night where Laura can hear me talk. 

“No one…” I say. “There’s no girl.” How am I going to get out of this one? I don’t want to tell her that I like her, not yet. I’m not mentally prepared for this. 

“C’mon, ya liar. What’s ‘er name?” Laura asks with a grin, knowing she’s got me. I feel my face flush bright red as I try to think of something I can tell her that she'll believe.

"Uh... I uh... don't know," I say finally. 

" _You don't know 'er name_?" Laura asks.

"Uh, no. I don't," I lie. 

"What's she look like? Maybe I know 'er," Laura offers. "Wait, is she from 'round here?"

"Yeah, she is," I tell her. I might as well not lie about everything, tell the truth a little. 

“So what’s she look like?” How am I supposed to get out of this one?

“Um… she’s pretty,” I say vaguely. How am I supposed to say stuff about the girl I like when she’s the one I’m talking to? 

“That’s it? She’s perdy?”

“Yeah. She’s pretty,” I repeat. What am I supposed to say? “She’s got nice eyes.”

Laura raises an eyebrow, looking at me with the same eyes that I’m talking about in slight confusion. 

“Okay…”

“Don’t you have guts to pull out?” I ask, trying to change the subject. Laura shakes her head. 

“Nope. Got all th’ guts out an’ packed th’ meat up when you ‘as passed out.” Thank God. I don't think I'd be able to stand it if she hadn't finished yet. 

“How long was I out?” I ask. 

“Weren’t too long. ‘Bout five minutes ‘r so,” Laura replies, putting her hand on my forehead again. Her skin is still tinged red from the blood, but she’s wiped most of it off. “You feelin’ a’right?” she asks as she moves some of my hair off of my face.

“Yeah.” As alright as I can feel when your hand is touching me. “I’m good.”

She smiles. “Good. Let’s get goin’ back then. Might make it in time fer lunch.”

Laura’s Point of View

When I walk into the regional officer meeting on Thursday evening, I can already tell It’s not going to be fun. 

Ashley’s literally all over Rob, and they’re the only two in the room. Perfect. I stop halfway through the doorway, and Louis bumps into me. 

He asked if he could come with me, and I thought it would probably be alright, and I needed the distraction, so I said sure. 

I clear my throat, standing there in the doorway, and they move apart. 

“Oh, Laura!” Rob says, his face turning red. “S-sorry, we didn’t think anyone would be here for.. a while yet.” 

“Nah, ‘t’s a’right,” I lie, moving from the doorway. “ ’m earlier’n us’ual.”

“Yeah,” Ashley says from her spot on the table, “you’re usually not this early.” 

“I got 'round 'lil earlier this time,” I say, tossing my binder onto the table and taking a seat in one of the chairs. “What’re we meetin’ ‘bout?” 

“Um, the alumni banquet. They want us to be there,” Rob stutters, moving over to his chair to look through his binder, much to Ashley’s disappointment. She huffs, hopping off of the table and walking over to stand behind him, laying her head on his shoulder. "And there's a few other things..." he mutters. 

I resist the urge to roll my eyes, and instead ask, “do they want us ta do anythin’?”

Rob shakes his head, a little distractedly. “No they just want us to show up, answer some questions, then we can eat and leave. They said that they only need a couple of us, so I thought we could decide who wants to go when everyone gets here.”

“Hey, we’re a couple!” Ashley tells Rob excitedly. “There’s two of us, we could go!”

“What if I wanna go?” I ask, just to mess with her. Her head whips over to glare at me. 

“We’ll figure it out when everyone else gets here,” Rob says nervously, avoiding the cat fight that may or may not be unavoidable. 

Liam’s Point of View

When I hear Laura’s truck pull into the driveway again, it’s getting dark outside. Once the engine is shut off, I hear Laura’s boots on the porch, then she’s shoving the door open and going up to her room, walking right past the lads and I as we sit on the couches. 

Louis comes through the door a few moments later, walking over and plopping onto the couch next to Harry. 

“I will  _never_  understand women,” he mutters, crossing his arms. 

“What happened?” Harry asks. 

“I don’t even know, but I think it was Ashley’s fault. One second Laura was fine, the next she’s practically going across the table,” Louis says animatedly. “I didn’t even hear what Ashley said.”

“Did they fight?” I ask. Laura seemed mad when she walked in. 

Louis shakes his head. “No, but it was close. I wouldn’t have blamed Laura if she threw a few punches, though. Ashley was just asking for it.”

“What did she do?” Zayn asks. 

“She kept pushing Laura, rubbing it in her face that Ashley’s got Rob and Laura doesn’t,” he explains. “I don’t think I’ve seen her that mad before.”

Just then Laura’s door opens, and Laura walks out. She’s changed her hair, put it into a braid instead of a ponytail, and she still looks mad. 

“ ‘M goin’ ta Nani’s,” she tells us. “Be back later.”


	45. Chapter 45

Harry's Point of View

Laura does come back later. Much later. Friday morning, as a matter of fact. She's quiet for most of the day, like she's thinking really hard about something. 

She isn't really herself until we drive down to the Wilder's for the barn dance. Once we're on the road, she's back to talking and joking around with us like normal, like she's figured out whatever it was that she was thinking about. 

She doesn't have her guitar in the back, because she and the Dillons aren't playing this week. So she says she's just going to stay at the table with us and the others. 

And she does. She plops herself down in a chair next to Louis, and starts up a game of cards. Even though she loses every single time, she still keeps a smile on her face. 

After a little bit, she goes off to dance, and Louis follows her. He's so gone for her, it's almost sickening. They would be cute together though. 

They're cute right now, the way that they're goofing around with each other as they dance to the upbeat song that is being played. 

"What are you staring at Haz?" I hear Niall ask. "It's your turn."

"Oh! Sorry," I apologize, laying my card down. "They're cute," I add, nodding toward Louis and Laura. 

"Lola," Liam says, rolling his eyes. 

"What?" Erica asks from her spot next to him. She might as well be sitting in his lap, she's moved her chair so close to his.  

"Louis and Laura. Lola," Niall elaborates, setting his card down on the table so Ann can take her turn. "They're practically attached at the hip."

"Yeah, they were together almost all the time the past couple days," I add. 

"Really?" Erica asks. "What were they doing?"

"Well, Wednesday they went hunting in the morning," Zayn starts.

"Wait, what?" Erica interrupts. "She took  _him_  huntin'?" We nod. "Laura don't take  _nobody_  huntin' with 'er," the short girl mutters. "She don't even take me."

Hmm... suspicious...

"But she said she used to go hunting with her boyfriends," Liam says.

Erica gives him a look. "When she went with them, they weren't actually huntin', they was testin' out th' tree stand. Makin' sure it was stable."

Oh.  _Well_. 

"But Louis said they were on the ground the whole time," I cut in, remembering hearing him complain about the dirt. Erica's eyes get wide. 

"She took 'im  _there_? Lucky son of a bitch."

"What's special about that spot?" Liam asks. 

"She always gets th' biggest bucks there. An' nobody can find it 'cept her," Erica explains. "He must be somethin'." She glances over at the two of them. They're slow dancing now, standing awfully close together.

Laura's Point of View

When I hear the first notes of the next, much slower, song, I'm already starting to make my way back to the table where everyone else is sitting. Until someone grabs my arm. 

"Hey, where are you going?" Louis asks. "Don't you wanna keep dancing?"

I shrug. "Didn't think you'd wanna." What was  _that_ , Laura? 

He grins goofily, then asks, "do you wanna dance with me?"

I smile. "Sure." It's just going to confuse me more, but alright. 

As Luke starts singing the familiar words, Louis pulls me closer, wrapping an arm around my waist and grabbing my hand with his. I set my free hand on his shoulder, and we start to sway back and forth. 

**Well my heart didn't skip a beat, when I saw you standing there, looking like some kinda angel, like you were walking on air**

**And the earth didn't move when you first said my name, I didn't feel a thing, no not me.**

**My heart didn't skip a beat...**

**This ain't no love song** **I just felt like getting my guitar on and singing a tune, singing about you, feeling good and tapping my shoes**

**And all this stuff I'm making up well you probably won't be hearing it on the radio but then you never know**

**So baby if you want, you can sing along, but this ain't no love song**

He's alright at this dancing thing, he's not too pushy with the leading thing, and he's not getting all handsy, which is refreshing. He knows what to do though, and that's what the biggest difference is from pretty much every other guy that's danced with me. I've had to tell them what to do, and while I like being the one doing the telling, it's nice to have a break once in a while. To be the one taking orders, so to speak, instead of giving them.  

**I couldn't sleep last night, but you weren't on my mind**

**And I went for a drive last night, but if you saw me driving by well I must've took a wrong turn**

**I must've been thinking bout something else, had a melody in my head yeah maybe that's why**

**I couldn't sleep last night**

I really couldn't sleep very well last night, but it wasn't because I was thinking about anyone. I was just thinking in general. About life. Not Louis, no way. I wasn't thinking about my conversation with Nani about the weird feeling I get in my gut whenever I'm around him. 

She, of course, thinks that I like him. I'm not so sure. And I told her so.

Then she proceeded to remind me that I'm just like Mama, and I'm stubborn when it comes to accepting other people's opinions. That part I think she got right. But I don't like Louis like that. Even if he is nice looking.

**This ain't no love song** **I just felt like getting my guitar on and singing a tune, singing bout you, feeling good and tapping my shoes**

**And all this stuff I'm making up well you probably won't be hearing it on the radio, b** **ut then you never know**

**So baby if you want you can sing along, but this ain't no love song, love song, love song, singing to you baby, singing to you baby a** **ll night long**

Nope. Don't like him. Even if he's got pretty blue eyes that are the same color as the sky. Eyes that are currently looking at me. He's got a nice smile too. He's smiling at me. I smile back. I hope I'm not blushing right now, that would be embarrassing. Especially since I don't like Louis like that. He's really close to me. Like, the way he's holding me, I'm pressed right up against his chest. Were we this close to start with? What's going on? 

**Yeah half this stuff I'm making up well you probably won't be hearing it on the radio, b** **ut then you never know**

**So baby if you want you can sing along, but this ain't no love song, love song, love song**

_Ow_ , what the hell? He just stepped on my foot! Aw, but now he's apologizing, and I should be saying something sassy, but all I've got is, 

"No, yer a'right."

Lame, Laura. What are you doing with your life?

**This ain't no love song**

Thank the Lord, it's over! Now I can go be confused by myself. Until the entire - well, most of it - team comes over for a sleepover. 

Wait a second, Louis hasn't let go yet. What is he doing?

I awkwardly fake a cough, and he seems to come to his senses, pulling his hands back with a 'sorry.'

"Yer fine," I reply, stepping back a little. Did that give him the wrong idea? "You wanna go play cards?" I've got to act normal until I figure this thing out, so he doesn't suspect anything. 

"Sure," he says with a smile, following me back to the table where everyone is. 

But when we get there, there's only one chair left. Of course. 

And me, being the ladylike person that I am, jokingly shove Louis out of the way so I can sit in it.

"Hey!" he protests with a fake pout. "What about me?"

I shrug. "I dunno, what 'boutcha?"

He frowns, then grins, then moves over, sitting on my lap. 

"Oof! hey!" I groan. "I can't see!"

Wow Laura, he's crushing your leg, and all you say is that you _'can't see'_? Again, what are you doing with your life?

"Is this better?" Louis asks, wiggling around so that he's sitting sideways on my lap. 

"I s'pose," I mutter. I look over at Erica, who is staring at me with wide eyes, her mouth hung open. "Close yer mouth, sugar, you'll catch flies. Deal me some cards, por favor."

"That should be good 'nuff," I say once we've got the bunkhouse cleaned up for the team sleepover. "Thanks fer th' help."

"No problem," the guys answer. They've been vacuuming, folding laundry, and picking things up around the place, helping me make it look nice. And it's only taken an hour or so.

"Do we get to stay down here, or do you want us upstairs?" Liam asks.

"You prolly oughta stay up there. I ain't sure what th' girls'll wanna do at first," I say, looking at the already sizable mountain of junk food piled onto the coffee table. It's only going to get bigger, because these girls love their sweets. 

I hear a knock at the door. 

"Go on, get outta here," I say, shooing them up the stairs.

I open the door to let Erica and Elle in, telling them to put their overnight stuff by the couches. They walk in, making themselves at home, Erica of course going right to the fridge. Camryn and Zoe arrive soon after, walking right in without knocking. Their usual.

"So Laura, where them boys at?" Zoe asks, looking around as if she expects them to be in the room with us. 

"Sent 'em upstairs. Pretty sure they're campin' out 'n Harry's room," I reply. She just looks at me, her mouth hung open. 

"They ain't gonna be out here with us?" she asks, pouting.

"They'll prolly come down once 'n awhile. Didn't take no food with 'em, an' th' bathroom's down here." This seems to satisfy her, and she nods, taking a seat next to Erica on the couch. 

We talk for awhile, then there's a knock at the door. 

"Must be Sam 'n Sue," Camryn says as I get up to open the door. I turn the knob and, sure enough, I see the two girl's smiling faces. 

"Hey!" I greet them, stepping aside to let them and their huge overnight bags through. 

"Hi!" Sam replies, dropping her bag on the top of the now waist-high pile of duffels before taking a seat on the couch. I sit on the floor in between the two couches, completing the circle of my teammates. 

"So Laura, where them fine boys at? You keepin' 'em to yerself?" Sue asks.

"They're upstairs," I answer, nodding toward Harry's room. " 'S that th' only reason ya'll wanted ta have this here?" I ask, just joking around.

"No... there was other reasons..." Zoe trails off, looking to Camryn for help.

"You do have th' biggest house," Cam pitches in, saving Zoe's ass. 

"And you've got the biggest TV," Sam adds.

"And... yer th' captain," Elle points out. 

"Yeah, it's just a coincidence that you also happen to have five hot guys in yer house with hot accents," Zoe says innocently, picking at her nails. 

"A'right, I get it," I say, holding my hands up in mock surrender, a smile on my face.

"Let's get this party started then!" Sam shouts, reaching into her bag and pulling out about ten different movies for us to watch. 

This is gonna be a long night of fun.

After we've watched Pitch Perfect, eaten half of the huge mountain of junk food on the coffee table, and I've braided all of the other girls' hair, we decide - well, Camryn decides - to play truth or dare.

"So Zoe, truth or dare?" Camryn asks, turning to face her best friend.

"Dare," Zoe replies without hesitation. 

"I dare ya ta eat that whole box o' twinkies!" Camryn exclaims, pointing to the only unopened box of food on the table in the middle of our circle. Zoe gives her a weird look, but shrugs, reaching for the box of ten twinkies, opening it and then pulling out one of the individually wrapped cakes. 

"Ya'll can keep goin', I'll prolly be awhile," she says, taking a huge bite of it. 

"Alright, Laura, truth or dare?" Sam asks, turning to me. 

"Dare," I reply. She smirks.

"I dare ya ta get them boys down here," Sue says. 

"By yelling that yer naked," Camryn adds. 

"Ya'll're awful, ya know that?" I scold, a small smile on my face. I turn toward the door that I know they're behind and yell, " _don't_  come out here, I'm gettin' naked!"

Within seconds, the door flies open, and Louis and Harry run out, clumsily bumping into each other and nearly falling down the stairs. They stop at the loft railing, looking around frantically. When they see me sitting on the floor, fully clothed, a look of disappointment falls over their faces. 

"Aww, come on!" Harry pouts.

"False alarm, lads," Louis calls into the room he and Harry just ran out of. 

"But now that yer out here, how 'bout ya come down here?" Zoe calls, biting into another twinkie. I think she's on her third or fourth one. 

The two boys seem to perk up at that, and race down the stairs, pushing each other until they both take a seat on either side of me. 

"Good ta know that y'ain't gonna listen ta me iff'n I yell  _not_  ta look at me," I mutter, nudging Louis with my elbow. He doesn't say anything, just grins and looks down at the floor. 

"If you announce it, it's pretty much the same as saying 'come look at me'," Harry defends.

"Well done Laura. But that ain't all of 'em," Sam points out. 

"Zayn's asleep, he wouldn't get up. But Liam and Niall are still awake. I can go get them," Harry offers. 

"That," Zoe purrs, "would be lovely."

Harry stands again, jogging up the stairs and into his room, coming back out a few seconds later with Liam and Niall behind him. 

"A'right, mission accomplished. They're here. Ya want 'em ta stay?" I ask. 

"Duh," Zoe replies, biting into the last twinkie from the box. 

"Hey! Aren't you going to share?" Niall asks, mock offense in his voice. 

"Can't," Zoe says with her mouth full, "got dared ta eat 'em all." 

"Speakin' of," Cam starts, "d'ya wanna join in?"

The guys look at me, as if they need to ask permission. 

"Don't look at me, yer big boys, you can make yer own choices."

"Alright then, I'm in," Harry says, sitting back down in the circle. 

"If Haz is in then I'm in," Louis pipes up.

"We'll play too," Liam adds, Niall and him sitting over by Erica.

"Hold up. We gotta set some rules," I say, not wanting this to get too out of hand. 

"Yes,  _mother_ , we get it," Sam sighs. 

"No gettin' naked, no grabbin' junk," I say. "We got a tourney tamarra, Rafe needs us at our best, not all worn out 'n sore."

"Ugh, fiiiiine Ma," Sue whines. They know why I'm doing this, so they aren't really mad at me, just a little disappointed that I won't just give in to whatever they want. 

"A'right, who's next?" I ask. The girls jump at this, smiling again. 

"I got this," Sue says. Then she turns to Harry. "Truth or dare?" 

"Dare," he replies with a smirk.

"Hmm... take yer shirt off," she giggles. I give her a look that makes her get serious for a second, but then she starts giggling again when Harry reaches for the hem of his shirt, pulling it over his head. I will admit, no matter how many times it happens, I can't get used to these guys without shirts. It's a pretty nice view. 

"A'right, Erica! Truth or dare?" Sam asks.

"Umm... truth."

"Aww... ya chicken!" Cam teases.

"If ya could change one thing 'bout yerself, what would it be?" Sam asks.

Erica think for a minute, then says, "I'd be taller. I wanna be a hitter in th' front row like ya'll." 

"You'll get yer chance," I say, knowing how bad she wants to play front row in the games. She's just not quite tall enough yet. "Eat yer vegetables fer a change," I joke.  

Louis' point of View

After about twenty minutes, everyone has had a turn, and things are starting to pick up. Dares are getting a little more intense. Truths are digging deeper.

"So Laura, truth or dare?" Zoe asks. 

"Dare." Laura's been doing straight dares since the game started, not backing down no matter how weird they are.

"I dare you to..." Camryn leans over, whispering something in her ear, and she grins. Uh oh. "Go in the closet for ten minutes with..." she trails off, looking around the circle. "That one," she says as points at me. Wait, what?

"Ten whole minutes? 'M gonna fall asleep," Laura says, standing to her feet. "C'mon, chosen one," she says as she tugs at my sleeve. She offers a hand, pulling me to my feet, then turns to walk toward the small closet under the stairs. 

"Can we turn th' light on?" she asks, almost sarcastically, like she knows the answer already. 

"No, what do you think this is?" a voice laughs from the circle. 

Laura opens the door, the motions for me to go in. "After you," she says.

"Oh no, after you," I insist. 

"No, no, after  _you_ ," she says with a grin. 

"Ladies first!" Camryn calls from her spot in the circle. Laura rolls her eyes, walking into the dark closet. 

"I try ta be nice..." she mutters as I follow her. 

"Are we supposed to shut the door?" I ask.

"Course we are," Laura replies. I shut the door, plunging both of us into darkness. It takes a moment, but my eyes adjust, and I can make out the outline of Laura in front of me. I can feel some of the heat coming from her body, the closet is that small. She's moving around, brushing against me a little, then she's going down. 

"What are you doing?" I ask nervously. Is she getting on her knees? Does that mean she's going to...? I feel my pants tighten at the idea of a blowjob, but will myself not to think about it. 

" 'M sittin' on th' floor, what's it look like?" she sasses.

"Well, I can't really see what you're doing," I answer with a nervous laugh. "It's kinda dark."

"Y'gonna stay up there or sit with me?" she asks, and I catch the shine off of her eyes in the dim light as she looks up at me.

"I'll sit, I suppose. How long are we in here for?" I sit down crosslegged like Laura is, our knees touching in the small space. 

"Ten minutes. Prolly 'bout nine now," she answers. "So watcha wanna do?"

I shrug. "I dunno. Aren't we supposed to do something though?" Isn't that the point of the closed door?

"You tryin' ta initiate somethin'?" Laura asks. I can hear the grin in her voice, even though I can't see it. Just like she can't see how red my face is. Which is good. 

"No, no," I laugh, trying to cover up my slight embarrassment. "Um.. I dunno.. teach me some Cherokee."

I see her tilt her head to one side. "Really? You wanna learn it?"

"Yeah." Then I can figure out what you're saying when you aren't speaking English. 

"Okay. Um.. whaddya wanna know?" 

By the time Camryn yanks open the door and blinds us with the bright light of a flashlight, I've learned how to say pronouns and am starting to put together simple sentences.

"Dang it!" Camryn complains. "They're just talking!'

"Dang it!" Zoe echos. 

"We're free!" Laura cheers, crawling out of the closet before standing and walking back over to the circle and sitting back down. 

Laura's Point of View

"Truth or Dare?" Sam asks me. 

"Dare," I reply. I'm a little cautious, because they've been pushing me toward Louis, and I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing. And by the look on her face, she's not about to ease up on me at all. 

"Kiss Louis," she says with a grin. I feel my eyes get wide. 

"What?" I ask. 

"You heard me. Kiss him."

"Are you scared, Laura?" Louis asks from next to me. I look over at him. As if I'd be scared of kissing someone. 

But at the same time, I am kind of scared. This is gonna make it worse. The confusion. Not the scared thing. 

But I'm not scared of anything. And I'm thinking for too long. 

So I roll my eyes, press my fingers to my lips, and slap Louis on the cheek with them. 

"Well then," he says, rubbing his face. Is that disappointment I hear?

I look over at Sam and see her half glaring at me. I smirk, remembering the rule about no repeating dares that we instated when Georgia and Vanessa kept making people eat peanut butter and pickles. 

That was not a fun combination.

"You never specified th' method," I point out to Sam, who pouts. 

"Alright, so it's my turn?" Niall asks. When Sam nods, he turns to Liam. "Truth or Dare?"

"I'll go with dare," Liam says bravely. That's new. He's been picking truth the entire time.

"Snog Erica," Niall says with a smirk. Liam's face gets really red, really fast. 

"Wait, what?" Zoe asks, looking at me. I shrug. I have no clue what Niall just said either. 

"Don't look at me, I don't understand what they're sayin' half th' time either," I say, putting my hands up. I turn to Louis. "Translate for us 'mericans, please."

"Translate what?" he asks.

"What's snog?" Camryn asks. 

"Snog. Like, make out?" he says, like he's questioning it himself. 

I look over at Erica, whose expression is one of shock. It's fitting, she's the one that's gonna get snogged. Is that how you say it?

Liam looks at her when she turns toward him, and shrugs with a smile. 

"Can't back down from a dare," he says sheepishly. Erica rolls her eyes as he leans over. 

I roll my eyes when he cups her cheek with his hand and kisses her. 

The rest of the girls start yelling some things that I won't repeat, but I will say that it was quite entertaining. 

And by the time Liam sits back down, Erica's face is about as red as her shirt. Which is really red. 

"Alright, my turn," Zoe says, grinning over at Harry.

This is gonna be a long night. 


	46. Chapter 46

3rd Person Point of View

When the team stumbles out the door of the bunkhouse the next morning, grumbling about how they shouldn’t have stayed up so late (even though they know very well that they’re going to do the same thing at the next sleepover), it’s barely five in the morning. Laura and the guys follow, after everyone’s gone and the horses are fed, falling into the seats of the truck, blinking the sleep from their eyes. 

There’s a tournament this morning, and the bus leaves the high school at six thirty. Hence the getting up early. 

By the time they’re climbing onto the bus and saying their good mornings to the coach, most of the girls have woken up enough to know what’s going on. But not Laura. 

She probably fell asleep the latest out of all the people in the bunkhouse, laying on her sleeping bag and wondering about why she didn’t just kiss Louis. 

Did that give him the wrong idea?  _Does_  she like him? Or is this just some thing that she’s reading too much into, and it’ll pass after a few days?

All this and more were running through her head as she stared at the ceiling, unable to calm the mess of thoughts in her head until around one or two thirty in the morning. 

She’s unaware that Louis wasn’t asleep either. He was laying a few feet from her, watching as she struggled with the thoughts in her head. 

He didn’t know what she was thinking about, but it looked serious, so he didn’t bother her. It’s not like he could’ve held a conversation with her anyway. He was a little worked up from the not-kiss. 

What did it mean? Why didn’t she just kiss him and call it good, like she did with Zayn? Does that mean that Louis is more than what Zayn is to Laura? What if Laura likes him too, and she just hasn’t said anything about it? 

Louis hasn’t noticed anything off about her, she’s been acting completely normal lately. Well, as normal as Laura gets. 

She’s not exactly normal compared to what Louis is used to with a girl. She doesn’t wear makeup at all, not that she needs it. She’s almost always got her hair up in a braid, not leaving it down very often. Even if they aren’t doing anything that day, Laura’s hair is most likely going to be in some sort of plait. It makes it seem more special though, when she does leave her hair down. Like there’s something important going on, or a special day. 

Laura also doesn’t have a problem making herself comfortable. She’ll spread out on the couch, not really caring who’s sitting next to her. Even though it’s most often Louis. She’ll lay her legs across his lap like it’s a completely normal thing to do. 

There’s no issues with dirt either. While most girls that Louis has met would be terrified of getting covered in mud, Laura practically rolls in it if the mood catches her right. It’s not like it’s a big deal anyway, clothes can be washed, showers can be taken. She’s not worried about looking pretty all the time, it doesn’t seem to matter so much to her. 

Her voice is smooth, like molasses being poured out from a jar. Louis loves hearing Laura talk. It's not just the smooth tone that he likes, it's the slow drawl that she has, the small differences in the way she says things. The rhythm of her sentences is like it's own song, one that's quickly becoming Louis's favorite.

What strikes Louis the most though, is how fearless she is. Whether it’s something simple, like squashing a spider that’s crawling up her arm, or as big as diving off of a nearly hundred foot riverbank into the murky water below, Laura doesn’t seem to be afraid of anything. She’s good at talking to people she doesn’t know, even talking in front of a room full of people doesn’t faze her. 

So why didn’t she just kiss him?

They’re pretty close as it is, good friends. So it’s nothing weird when Laura tosses her bag onto an empty seat and falls into the bus seat with Louis and pulls out her headphones, offering one to him before plugging them into her phone and going to her music library. 

Maybe she didn’t want to make it weird between them. Avoid the awkward atmosphere that usually follows friends kissing. That makes sense. Louis can accept that. 

Across the aisle of the bus, Harry quietly watches the two, half asleep himself. 

Harry knows that Louis likes Laura, and now he’s getting vibes that suggest that the feelings aren’t exactly one-sided. Well, not exactly vibes, but reactions. Laura’s face gets red more often when she’s around Louis, and she smiles more too. 

And judging by the way she isn’t shrugging him off when he falls asleep on her shoulder, choosing to smile fondly and lean her head on his and go to sleep herself, Harry’s pretty sure that Laura likes Louis too. 

But he’s not going to say anything. Mostly because he’s not completely one hundred percent sure, and also because this isn’t something that can just be messed around with. A misunderstanding could mess up their friendship, which would change the rest of their time here in Alabama for the lads. So Harry’s going to keep quiet. For now.

When they get to the large college complex where the tournament is going to be held, Rafael walks down the aisle of the bus, waking up the people in the seats that have fallen asleep. Which is most of the team. Just Georgia and Vanessa are still awake, hyped up from the five-hour energys that they drank when they woke up. If it weren’t for the large amounts of makeup caked on their faces, they would look tired and worn out. They got a full forty minutes of sleep the night before. And they weren’t at the sleepover. 

As Rafe gets to the seat with Louis and Laura in it, he smiles as he shakes Laura’s shoulder gently. He hasn’t seen Laura this comfortable with a guy before. She would always be the one to stay awake on the bus, no matter how much sleep she didn’t get the night before, saying that as captain, she should be awake when they got to their destination. 

That wasn’t the case this time. 

“Wait, wait a second!” a whisper comes from behind the coach. Erica leans over the back of her seat, phone in hand, and snaps a picture of the sleeping pair. “Okay, you’re good,” she says with a smile after she checks to make sure the photo isn’t blurry. 

Erica has her suspicions about Laura and Louis too. But she isn’t saying anything, because it isn’t one of Laura’s strong suits to be accepting of people saying that she likes someone. 

Erica should know. She told Laura about how the taller girl looked obsessed with Paul. She felt awful when she heard what Paul had almost done, but Laura had assured the smaller girl that it wasn’t her fault, she couldn’t have known. Laura’s face had said that there were no hard feelings, but she never quite listened when Erica tried to suggest another guy that Laura could potentially date. 

Louis doesn’t seem like that, though. From what Erica’s seen, he’s pretty nice. A real gentleman. And he’s hot. That just adds to the brownie points. 

Erica thinks that they would look cute together. They’re cute right now as they slowly wake up, uncurling themselves from each other, sorting out who’s limbs are whose as they rub the sleep from their eyes. They’re cute when they sleepily smile at each other, mumbling apologies when one accidentally hits the other in the face with an elbow (Louis) or nudges the other with their foot as they try to climb out of the seat (Laura). 

They’re the last two off of the bus, because Laura always waits until everyone is off to double check that they took everything with them, and Louis wasn’t sure if he should leave, but he didn’t want to. 

So when they do climb down the bus steps, thanking the driver, the whole team - excluding Rafe, who went to see which court they would play on first - is waiting for them. 

“Y’coulda went in,” Laura grumbles in their direction, rubbing her eye with her fist. 

“Wanted the captain to lead us in,” Erica replies. She doesn’t mention that the entire team wanted to see the two of them stumble off the bus together. 

“Well then,” Laura says. She looks over at Louis, who seems a little more awake than she does. “Hold still,” she orders, moving behind him to jump on his back. 

Louis doesn’t complain, but this wasn’t what he was expecting. He stumbles forward a little, though he would deny it if anyone asked, and slides his hands under Laura’s sweatpant-covered thighs, holding her up. He feels Laura squeeze his sides with her legs as she says, “giddy up,” and laughs as he starts walking. 

Laura wraps her arms around his neck, her bag bumping against his chest, and sets her chin on top of his head, watching where they’re going. 

Louis doesn’t think that Laura’s too awful heavy, just enough to make him walk just a little bit slower, but not enough for him to drop her. It could be that he’s trying to show off a little, but Laura’s feet don’t touch the ground until they reach the table where their bags are to be left, and she has to change into her volleyball shoes. 

He doesn’t miss the way that she turns her face into his hair for a second, making his breath catch in his lungs, before muttering a ‘you smell good,’ and hopping down onto the floor, unzipping her bag to get out her shoes and tape for her ankle. 

It’s been better, Laura’s ankle, but she doesn’t want to take any chances with it. Ankles are important in volleyball. And for riding horses. So she gets it taped for practices, games, and tournaments, just in case. 

When they walk out into the gym, the guys go find a spot in the bleachers close to where the team will be sitting when they get to take breaks in between plays. 

“So which team’re we playin’ first?” Laura asks when Rafe walks over. 

“We play Clinton on court six, then Ida on court four. After that we get a break, then it’s Jackson on court three. Then we have to wait for the brackets to get made before we know who we’ll play again,” the coach replies. 

“Clinton, ain’t that the team with all the lefties?” Erica asks. 

Laura’s face lights up at the question. She loves to block left handed hitters. 

“Yes, it is,” Rafe answers, smiling at the tall girl’s reaction. “But you have to get warmed up before you can block them. So go.” He waves the team onto the court, where they each partner up and grab a ball, warming up their arms. 

The lads sit on the bleachers and watch, well, four of them are watching. Niall’s texting Ann and watching at the same time. She’s just told him that her Dad wants to meet him. And he’s okay with that, but now he’s nervous. 

What if he doesn’t make a good impression? Will being in a band make her dad think less of him? What about the fact that he’s going to leave as soon as they’ve earned enough to get them all back home? 

It can’t be too long until that happens, they’ve been saving every check they’ve gotten, and haven’t bought anything that wasn’t absolutely necessary. 

But that doesn’t matter right now. What matters is that Ann’s father doesn’t come after Niall with his shotgun like Niall’s been told he’s become famous for doing.

Honestly, if the guy doesn’t want anyone to date his daughter, then he shouldn’t have made her so pretty. 

By the time that Laura’s team has played all three teams in two games apiece, they’ve racked up five wins, and very empty stomachs. 

Also, some stink. But no one is going to mention that, right?

“Someone smells like man,” Zoe remarks. 

“There’s some  _men_  here, Zoe,” Camryn points out. 

“No, like, one of ya’ll,” Zoe corrects, motioning to the team. Once again, all eyes turn to Laura, who rolls her eyes. 

“It ain’t me, I done told ya!” she complains. 

“Yeah, but you spend the most time around men,” Camryn says quietly. Laura stops walking, looking at Cam as the girl realizes what she’s said. “I didn’t mean it like that, I just meant-”

“I know what ya meant,” Laura says with a laugh, her false pretense of anger fading quickly. 

Once the rather large group reaches the table where the team’s dropped their bags, the girls crowd around the bench, grabbing cupfuls of fruit, yogurt, and granola before dispersing around the area, sitting wherever they can make themselves comfortable. Erica, of course, goes to sit with Liam, Niall joining them as soon as he comes back from the concession stand. Harry and Zayn go over to talk with Zoe and Camryn, Louis and Laura following them, sitting on the floor with their backs against the wall of the cafeteria. 

They talk for a while about the tournament, how the girls think that they’ll do in the next games, things like that, until Rafe gets back.

“They just finished the last game, and everyone’s got a half hour break,” the coach tells them. “Then we’ve got two games to line judge, and then we play Jackson again.”

“Again?” Louis asks, turning to Laura. “But you played them already.”

“That ‘as pool play,” Laura explains. “What we’s goin’ inta is th’ bracket play. This is th’ stuff that counts.”

“So you just played six games for the fun of it?” he asks, smiling when Laura nods. 

“We’ve got a while to rest up, just don’t eat too much, and stay warm,” Rafe cautions. “I’ll come get you when we have to play.” 

“Awesome,” Laura says with a yawn, stretching her arms. 

“Are you  _still_  sleepy?” Zoe asks. 

“Hey, not all o’ us can function on two hours a’ sleep,” Laura shoots back, reaching for her bag to put her sweatshirt on. “Couldn’t fall asleep ‘cause o’ all that sugar.” And all the thinking, she adds mentally. 

“Are you going to sleep?” Louis asks. 

Laura nods. “Got time, might ‘s well. It’ll keep me from eatin’ too much.” 

Zoe nudges Camryn with her elbow. When the brunette looks up from her cup of food, Zoe nods over at Laura as she leans her head on Louis’ shoulder, closing her eyes. 

“She’s gonna sleep,” Zoe explains when Camryn raises an eyebrow.

The two girls keep the conversation on the tournament until they’re sure that Laura’s asleep, then once her mouth falls open, Zoe pouts.

“She always gets the hot ones,” the blonde complains. 

Louis’ eyes go wide, and he shakes his head. “No, no, we’re not - I mean, we aren’t-”

“Relax, you’re fine,” Camryn laughs. “She does talk about you pretty often though.”

“Really?” Harry asks. 

“Hey, buzz off, this isn’t about you,” Louis sasses. He turns eagerly to Camryn. “What does she say?”

“Well, she’s said  _repeatedly_  that you smell good,” Zoe says. 

“Is that a good thing?” Louis asks. This isn’t new information. Laura’s told him herself that she thinks he smells good. But what does it mean?

Zoe shrugs. “I dunno. she was always talking about how Wyatt smelled good, maybe it’s a good thing with her. I know I like it if a guy smells nice.”

“Who doesn’t?” Camryn asks with a grin. 

Wyatt. That was the ex that she had sex with. 

Damn, now Louis is thinking about sex with Laura. Fuck. 

Puppies and kittens, puppies and kittens…

“She hasn’t said much lately though,” Camryn adds, not noticing Louis’ inner struggle.  

“Is that good or bad?” Louis asks, scrambling to keep his thoughts coherent enough to hold a conversation. 

“I dunno,” the blonde shrugs. 

“Then why did you tell me?” he asks. 

Zoe just shrugs again. “Just thought you’d wanna know.”

Louis rolls his eyes. “What else has she said?” he inquires as Laura moves in her sleep, wrapping her fingers around his arm. 

Zoe’s eyes dart down to look at Laura’s face, then a smirk appears on her face at Laura’s open eyes, knowing the other girl is going to get a little mad for this. 

“She says you got a nice ass,” Zoe says quickly, barely dodging the half-hearted kick that comes from Laura. 

“I told ya not ta tell ‘im!” Laura groans. 

“How long have you been awake?” Louis asks, glancing down at her. 

“Long ‘nuff,” Laura grumbles, her cheeks tinted a little pinker than usual. “That’s th’ last time I tell you anythin’,” she says to Zoe. The blonde laughs at the empty threat, knowing that it’s not true. 

 Rafe comes around the corner of the cafeteria doorway, looking at the team. 

“We need two line judges for the next game,” he says. When the girls stay quiet, he adds, “if no one volunteers, we’ll have to go in number order.” 

Laura groans, remembering their coach’s tendency to start with the highest jersey number which, coincidentally, is hers. “I’ll do it.”  

“I’ll go with her,” Sue says, jumping up from her spot. 

“Perfect,” Rafe says with a smile. “Court two. They should have flags for you.”

The two girls walk out of the cafeteria, heading toward the large gymnasium.

“What are they doing?” Zayn asks. 

“Going to line judge,” Camryn replies. 

“What’s that?” Harry asks. 

“Um…” Camryn turns to Zoe for help.

“It’s easier if you watch it,” Zoe explains. 

“Oh. Can we?”

“Yeah.” 

The rest of the team and the guys get up, walk into the gym, and find some seats in the bleachers on one side of the court labeled with the number two. 

“So what are the flags for?” Liam asks Erica, seeing the red flags that Sue and Laura hold in their hands as they talk to the ref. 

“Those are for making the calls,” Erica explains. “You hold it a certain way when there’s a different call that has to get made.”

She explains what the calls mean as the ref goes through them with the two girls - holding the flag straight up in the air means the ball hit the ground outside the white lines that mark the edge of the court, waving the flag back and forth over the line means that the server’s foot crossed the line when they were serving, holding the flag so that the top is pointing inside the white line means that the ball was inside the lines when it hit the floor, and putting a hand over the top of the flag means that someone touched the ball before it went out, which usually mean that their team loses the ball. 

“We get called a lot for that one,” Erica adds after she explains the last call. 

“Why?” Liam asks. 

“Zoe gets a little slap happy sometimes and tries to get the ball when it’s too high for her to get a good touch on it. Laura does it too, but not quite as much.” 

Erica’s always been a little jealous of the taller girl’s skills, and how effortlessly she seems to be able to play the sport. Erica is good too, she knows that, but she won’t be able to hit or block the ball like Laura can, not unless she gets a little taller, which doesn’t seem likely. Both of her parents are pretty short, meaning her chances of growing to Laura’s Amazonian height are pretty slim. 

After the ref is finished making sure that Sue and Laura know all the calls, he sends them to their respective corners of the court, opposite each other, Laura on the side closest to where the team sits to watch the match. 

“So what are they doing?” Louis asks Camryn, who is sitting to his left. 

“They have to watch the lines and make the calls in case the ref doesn’t see what happens,” she explains as the game starts, already having told him what the different calls mean. 

The first two plays go without a hitch, both teams making clean, clear hits that are easy for the ref to call himself. 

Then there’s a block, and the ball goes out afterward. The ref looks to Laura, because the ball was on her side, to see her standing there with a hand on top of her flag. There was a touch on the ball. 

The ref nods, and motions for the ball to be given to to opposite team. 

“Are you kidding?” the coach of the team the lost the ball shouts. Laura turns to look at her calmly. 

“I only call what I see,” she says clearly. 

“Well, you must need glasses, because she obviously didn’t touch that ball!” the woman accuses. 

“Then how’d it hit th’ ground where it did?” Laura asks, calmly. “It had to’ve hit off something.”

The coach opens her mouth to say something else, but the ref beats her to it. 

“Ma’am, if you’re going to keep yelling at the line judges, you’ll be asked to leave,” he says sternly.

The coach doesn’t say anything, but gives Laura a final glare before sitting back down in her chair. Laura smiles at the woman, seemingly being polite, but Louis has seen that ‘kiss my ass’ smile before, and silently grins to himself. 

They watch the rest of that game, and the next, until Laura and Sue are handing in their flags to the ref and walking over to the team. 

“I thought she was gonna walk over and tear into you,” Zoe says, talking about the angry coach. The woman had been glaring at Laura for the remainder of the match, not paying enough attention to her team. 

Laura shrugs. “She touched it, what was I s’posed ta say?” 

“Why did she yell at you like that?” Louis asks as Laura sits down next to him. 

“Cause her team can’t block fer shit, didn’t ya see?” Laura asks. “Iff’n they had their hands right, th’ ball woulda gone back onta th’ other side, instead o’ goin’ out like it did.”

She holds up her hands, like she’s blocking the ball. 

“Iff’n yer in th’ middle, ya keep yer hands flat, like this,” she tells him. “Iff’n yer on th’ outside, ya gotta turn yer outside hand ta keep th’ ball from goin’ out,” she explains, turning her hands to demonstrate. Louis nods, mostly watching her face instead of her hands as she talks, noting the way that her eyes are sparkly in the bright lights of the gym, the way that her mouth moves to make the words, how her lips are just tiny bit pinker than the rest of her face, wondering how they’d feel against his... 

“You ain’t listenin’, are ya?” she says suddenly. 

Louis quickly shakes his head. “No, I’m listening. Isn’t there something else you have to do when you block though? To make the ball go down?”

Laura nods, then goes into explaining how the blockers have to kind of flick their hands down to get the ball to go toward the floor, not noticing how it makes Louis smile softly when she gets into describing the way that she does it, and the different ways that she blocks different types of hits. 

When the team has to go play, Laura tugs her hoodie over her head, tossing it at Louis’ head with a smile before hopping down the steps of the bleachers to warm up with Erica. 

Louis shakes his head as he pulls the clothing off of himself, halfway folding the hoodie before setting it on his lap, the faint smell of Laura in the fibers sticking in his head. 

“So, did you tell her?” Harry asks, moving to sit by Louis, taking the spot previously occupied by Camryn. 

“Tell her what?” Louis asks, not sure what Harry means. 

“That you like her,” Harry says quietly, knowing Louis probably doesn’t want everyone to hear. 

Louis shakes his head. “No, why would I do that?”

Harry look confusedly at his best friend. 

“Why wouldn’t you tell her?”

“We’re leaving, it wouldn’t be fair to her if I told her,” Louis explains. 

Harry is quiet for a moment, then he speaks up again. “But if it were you, wouldn’t you want her to tell you?”

Louis sighs, knowing his answer. He’d want to know. 

“But what if she doesn’t…” he starts, trailing off.

“Doesn’t feel the same?” Harry finishes. Louis nods. “Are you kidding me? Have you seen the way she looks at you?”

“What are you talking about?”

“She looks at you like you’re the best thing that’s happened to her,” Harry says with a small smile. 

“No she doesn’t,” Louis protests with a smile. He doesn’t want to believe it, what if Harry’s just saying that to make him feel better?

“Yeah, she does. Ask the rest of the lads, ask some of the girls. When you’re there, it’s like she doesn’t notice anyone else as well.” 

“You’re just saying that,” Louis half heartedly protests, the smile still on his face. 

“I can’t reach!” Erica’s voice says frustratedly, making both guys turn to look at what’s going on. 

Half of the team is laying on the ground, one leg in the air. Their partners are pushing their leg back, stretching the muscles. That’s where the problem is. 

Erica isn’t quite tall enough to push Laura’s leg back the right way. 

Laura smiles up at the shorter girl sympathetically, knowing how she struggles with her height.

“Yer a’right,” she says gently. 

Erica huffs, sitting on the floor next to Laura. 

“Get Louis to do it or something,” she grumbles jokingly. Laura laughs, then looks back at where Louis is sitting. 

“Hey,” she calls. “Need some assistance.”

“See?” Harry asks. “First one she calls for.”

“Shut up,” Louis says, shoving Laura’s hoodie at him before making his way over to where Laura is. “What do you want?” he asks, looking down at her. 

She points to her foot, which is still in the air. “Can you stretch me?” she requests.

“I guess. What do I have to do?”

“Grab my foot an’ push my leg back,” she explains, nudging his shoulder with the toe of her shoe.

“Okay.” Louis tentatively wraps his hands around her foot, and gently pushes her leg toward her body, not wanting to hurt her. 

“You can go farther, I ain’t gonna break,” Laura says, not really feeling the stretch yet.  

“Alright,” Louis says, pushing her leg a little farther back, until Laura says, “right there, that’s good.”

“Now what?”

“Hold it,” Laura says with a grin, counting to ten in her head before she says, “okay, let go.” 

“That’s it?” he asks as he lets go of her foot, letting her foot fall to the floor.

“Well, I got two legs, but yeah, that’s it,” Laura says, putting her other leg up. “Watch that ankle, don’t push on my foot,” she cautions. 

“What do I push on?” Louis asks. 

“My leg?” Laura suggests. “My ankle’s bein’ weird today, I ain’t sure what’s goin’ on.”

“Okay.” He wraps his hands around her calf, pushing her leg back until she tells him to stop, then holds it. “Your legs are soft,” he says quietly. 

“Shaved ‘em yesterday,” she says with a smile. “Yer hands’re warm.”

No one’s ever told him that. But her legs are really soft. At least, her calf is. Her thighs are probably softer…

“You can let go now,” Laura tells Louis, breaking his train of thought, which he’s thankful for. “Thanks.”

“Sure, no problem.” 

Louis walks back over to the bleachers, not quite able to get the feel of Laura’s soft skin on his fingers to go away. Not that he really wants to.

The team plays a total of four games, two against the Jackson team, and two against another team with red jerseys, and they win all four games. 

Then they have another break while the remaining two teams play each other, waiting for the results so that they can play the winner. 

“How long do these last?” Louis asks, leaning against Laura. They’re sitting back to back at the table, Laura taking occasional sips of Gatorade. 

“Usually last till ‘round noon,” Laura replies. “Why? You gettin’ bored?”

“No, just curious,” Louis says. “This is kind of fun.”

“Good,” Laura replies. 

They sit there quietly for a while, until Louis feels Laura’s shoulders start moving. 

“What are you doing?” he asks. 

“Braidin’,” Laura replies, plaiting the strips of leather in front of her. She’d cut some pieces from the hide of the deer she’s gotten the other day, and wanted to make a bracelet or necklace from it or something. 

“What are you braiding?” as far as Louis knows, the rest of the girls are either where he can see them or are sitting in the gym watching the match that’s still going, so she couldn’t be braiding anyone’s hair. 

“Deer hide,” she answers. 

“Is it from that deer you killed the other day?” he asks. 

“Yessir.”

“Isn’t it all gross and bloody?”

He feels Laura shake her head. “Nope. Cleaned it up. Wanna see?”

She doesn’t wait for his answer before bringing her arm back and holding the piece of hide in front of his face. 

“Whoa, how did you do that?” he asks, pulling the strip from her hand and holding it himself, examining the weaving she’s done with it. 

“It ain’t that hard,” Laura says, turning around and swinging her legs so that they’re on one side of the bench, and she’s sitting sideways. She sets her chin on Louis’ shoulder, watching him turn over the braid in his hands. 

“No, like, how do you do it?” he asks, wanting to know. 

“The braid?” He nods. “Here, I’ll show ya.”

She moves so that she’s pressed up against his back, one arm on each side of his shoulders. 

“Stick th’ end between yer knees,” she says. “Then take this one in this hand, an’ this one in yer other hand…”

Laura puts her hands over his, showing him how the braid goes, which strands to cross when, and keeping him from twisting the strands into a big knot. 

“Nani taught it to me,” she says after he’s gotten it. She’s still sitting the same way, her chin on his shoulder, which is more than a little distracting for him, but she’s folded her hands in her lap, watching as his fingers twist the strands the way she showed him. “Said it was some sorta braid just fer stuff that’s been hunted or somethin’ like that.”

“Sounds fancy,” Louis says. “Like, it’s just supposed to be for stuff like this? Like, when you kill something and you make something out of it?”

Laura nods. “Yeah.” 

They sit like that for a while, Louis braiding the strands together, and Laura watching, feeling the muscle in his shoulders move under her chin. 

His shoulders are pretty broad, she thinks to herself, broad and strong. Comfy to lean on, but strong enough to defend. 

“Alright ladies, we’re on court three, against Ida,” Rafe voice calls, breaking Laura from her thoughts. 

The rest of the team is slowly getting to their feet, and Laura jumps up, not wanting to be seen as slow. 

“What do I do with..?” Louis asks, looking up at her.

“I’ll put it in my bag, maybe finish it later,” she replies. 

By the time they walk out of the building at the conclusion of the tournament, the team has a new traveling trophy to fight over. 


	47. Chapter 47

Louis’ Point of View

“Are you sure you got everythin’?” Mr Johnson asks Laura as they watch the two Dillons load the last of the sleeping bags onto the large wagon that’s hooked up to all four of the ponies. 

Today is the day that we head out to go gather up all the cattle at the far end of the ranch’s property line that have been there all winter. All of us lads are going, and both Jeremy and Kyle are coming with us. Laura said that we’re taking all the horses with us, so we don’t need to leave anyone at the ranch to take care of them. 

“Yes Daddy, we got everythin’ we’re gonna need,” Laura replies. 

“A’right. You know th’ way?” he asks, sounding concerned. 

“Daddy, I been making this ride since I could walk. We’ll be fine,” she assures him. 

“I know you will,” he says with a smile. “I jus’ have ta make sure.”

Laura smiles, then turns to Jeremy. “We all set?”

Jeremy nods, and she turns back to her dad. 

“Well, see ya in a week an a half,” she says. 

“Be careful,” Mr. Johnson cautions. 

“I will be.” She moves to stand up on her tiptoes, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Love you Daddy.”

Mr. Johnson smiles, his eyes a little shinier than normal, and wraps his arms around his daughter, holding her close for a moment. “Love you too, Darlin’.” His eyes flicker to me for a second, and I’m reminded of earlier this morning, when he came to talk to me as I was saddling my horse. 

“Louis.” I had jumped when I first heard his voice say my name. I was supposed to be the only one in the stables, the others were already prepared to go. I had gotten up a little later than the rest, putting me behind everyone else for pretty much the whole morning. 

“Yes sir?” I had asked as I turned around to see him leaning on the stall door, a frown on his face. Uh oh. What did I do? Am I fired?

“I ain’t sure why,” he started, “but Laura seems to’ve taken a shine ta you.”

What the hell does that mean?

“You seem like a nice young man, so I ain’t too worried. But lemme tell you, iff’n you step one foot outta line, I’ll be yer worst nightmare fer th’ rest of yer life.”

My eyes had gone wide at the statement. I had no clue what he was talking about. 

It must have shown on my face, because he grinned, then took a few steps into the stall, stopping right in front of me. 

“You take care of ‘er, you hear me?” he had said sternly, looking straight at me. 

I had nodded. “Yes sir.”

He sighed, then reached into his pocket, pulling out a large knife in a leather sheath. He held it out to me. When I hesitated in taking it, he had asked,

“You’ll keep ‘er safe, won’t ya?”

I nodded again, taking the knife from him, this time understanding what he meant. “Yes sir. I’ll keep her safe.” 

This had made the old man smile. 

“I know you will, uwetsi.”

I still don’t know what he said. I’m trying to figure out a way to ask Laura what it means without saying, ‘hey, your Dad called me something, and I just want to make sure it isn’t bad.’

As Laura climbs into her saddle, waving at her dad before turning toward the small group of extra horses we’re bringing along. 

I look back at him as he stands on the porch of the ranch house, and he meets my eyes. I nod, silently telling him that I understand that he means for me to make sure Laura’s alright while we’re gone. He nods in return, a small grin on his face, then turns to go back into the house. 

When we finally stop for the night, I’m exhausted. Like, I can barely carry my saddle from where I tied my horse to where everyone else is putting theirs. And it was probably less than ten feet away. 

“So when do we sleep?” I ask Laura as she sets her saddle down on the ground a little ways away from mine, sitting down on the ground as Yankee comes over to sit next to her. 

“As soon as ya make yer bed,” she replies. “Less’n yer wantin’ somethin’ ta eat.” She glances over at me as she sits down on the ground, untying the bundle from the back of her saddle. “You a’right?” 

I nod. “Yeah. Just tired. I’ll be fine.”

She looks a little skeptical, but doesn’t question me. 

“Y'want somethin ta eat?” she asks instead. 

“Kind of,” I reply. I want to sleep, but I know I’m going to need food if I’m going to survive this week and a half in the wilderness.

“I’ll see what I got,” she mutters, reaching over to grab her saddlebags and look through them. After a few moments, she looks up at me. “Jerkey a’right?”

“Sure,” I reply, taking the piece of dried meat she hands me. “Thanks.”

“Yer welcome,” she answers quietly, taking a bite of her own piece.

“Hey Lulu?” Jeremy calls. 

“What?”

“You two gonna help us with this?” he asks, holding up part of a large tarp that looks like it could be - yep, it’s a tent. 

“It’s gonna be nice out tanight though,” Laura groans. “Don’t ya wanna sleep under th’ stars ‘r some romantic shit like that?”

Jeremy laughs, shaking his head. “You can iff’n ya want, but I’m stayin’ inside,” he replies, going back to helping the rest of the lads with the large tent. 

“Are you gonna sleep outside?” I ask Laura.

She shrugs. “Prob'ly.”

“Don’t you get cold?”

She shakes her head. “I got this big guy,” she says, scratching behind Yankee’s ear. “Keeps me warm at night.”

When I’m sliding into my sleeping bag inside the tent with the rest of the guys a little bit later, Jeremy asks if Laura’s staying outside. 

“I think she’s going to,” I reply. “Why?”

“Just wonderin’,” he replies.

“Why does she do that?” Liam asks. 

Jeremy kind of sighs, looking over at his brother, who’s fast asleep already. That kid can just fall asleep anywhere, it seems. 

“She kinda does that whenever we go out this way,” he says. “I don’t wanna say that she goes all Indian ‘r anythin’, but she ain’t quite th’ same ‘s she us’lly is. Kinda falls back on instinct ‘r somethin’ like that. Stays outside ‘nless we’re at one o th’ cabins ‘r iff’n it’s rainin’, rides out farther ‘n makes sure we’re goin’ th’ right way, stuff like that.”

I nod. I can sort of make sense of that. 

“It ain’t all bad,” Jeremy continues. “She’s got real good hearin’ when she’s out there. Keeps us outta trouble most ‘o th’ time.”

“You aren’t worried about her out there alone?” I ask. I’m a little worried about leaving her out there by herself. But Jeremy shakes his head. 

“No sir. She grew up out here. Literally. Been makin’ this drive since ‘fore she could walk. She knows what’s out there, an’ she knows how ta fight it. An' she’s got Yankee. That dog won’t let nothin’ touch ‘er,” he says. 

Well, that’s some comfort. I’m not going back on my word to her father if she’s done this before and hasn’t gotten hurt yet. 

Just to be safe though, I make sure to put the knife he gave me under my bundle of clothes that I’m using as a pillow, so I can get to it quickly if I need to. 

Laura’s Point of View

“Lomasi,” I hear a voice call, pulling me from sleep. 

Damn it, it’s that lady again, isn’t it? I can’t figure out where I’ve seen her before, but I just know that I know her from somewhere. 

“Five more minutes,” I groan, rolling over.

“Laura, you need to get up,” she says sternly, though I can hear the smile in her voice. 

I pry my eyes open, and see her sitting at the end of my bedroll, watching me. 

“Well, good morning!” she says cheerfully.

“Mornin’,” I say. “Where we goin’ this time?”

“We aren’t going anywhere,” she answers. “We’re just going to talk.”

“A’right.” I sit up, giving her my attention. “What ‘bout?”

“He wasn’t the right one for you,” she says. I furrow my eyebrows. 

“Who?”

“Any of them,” she answers. “Especially that last one you were so hung up on.”

“Rob?” She nods. “Well, who is th' right one?”

She laughs, shaking her head. I’ve heard that laugh before. 

“You’re very close to finding him. He’s not far away,” she tells me. “Very, very close.” 

“Can’t you jus’ tell me who it is?” It would make all this so much easier.

She shakes her head again, a small smile on her face. “Just like your father,” she muses. 

I raise an eyebrow. “How d’you know my father?”

She smiles, and then she’s gone, and someone is licking my face. 

“Damn it!” I say as I open my eyes again, seeing nothing but an orange sky above me, and my dog right next to me. 

I never find out what I want to. 

But she knows Daddy. That’s important. Very important. 

What if she’s the reason Mama isn’t here? 

Yankee licks my face again, making me laugh. 

“Go wake somebody else up, silly,” I tell him, and he runs over to the tent. When he realizes that he can’t open the zipper of the door, he looks back at me, whining. 

I get up, walking over to unzip the tent flap, and once he darts inside, barking like crazy, I zip it closed again, and walk over to the large wagon that we’ve brought with us, climbing in to look for something to make for breakfast. 

By the time the sun is up, we’ve packed up and are moving again. Jeremy and Liam are riding on the seat of the wagon, pulled by the four ponies, and the rest of us are on our horses. All three dogs - Yankee, Lassie, and Jeremy’s dog Blue - are running around excitedly, sniffing everything that they come across. 

Once in a while they’ll run in front of the horses, but they don’t get too close, having been accidentally kicked enough times to know better. 

That is, until Blue trips on a root and stumbles into Rebel’s leg.

Louis’ Point of View

I see Blue run in front of Rebel, and the horse startles, hopping back before starting to buck as the dog backs away. Laura swears through her teeth, pulling back on the reins and hanging on as her horse jumps into the air again and again, trying to rid himself of the saddle. 

I have no clue what to do, but I feel like I need to help. I look over at Jeremy and Kyle, who are watching what’s happening, but not doing anything about it.

Jeremy sees me looking, and I raise an eyebrow, silently asking if she’s going to need help. 

“She’ll be fine,” he says. “Iff’n she falls off, don’t say nothin’ ‘bout it.” 

Just as he says it, Rebel takes a jump, twisting in midair, and Laura falls from her saddle, landing on the ground. 

I start to nudge Frodo with my heels to try and catch the big horse, but Jeremy stops me. 

“Hang on, this ‘s gonna be good,” he says. 

Laura picks herself up off the ground, brushing the dust off, and I can already tell that she’s mad as she walks toward her horse, who’s still jumping around like his feet are on fire. 

“Hey!” she shouts, her voice loud and angry.

Rebel immediately stills, looking at her with his ears up. 

She walks up to him, grabbing ahold of the reins. 

“You better’ve gotten that outta yer system, cause I ain’t takin’ no more shit from you, you hear me?”

I swear I see the horse nod, and then after tapping him on the nose with her finger, Laura climbs back into the saddle, and everything keeps going like we never stopped. 

I nudge my horse forward until I’m riding next to Laura.

“Are you okay?” I ask carefully, not sure if she’s still mad or not. 

She looks over at me. “Yeah. Prolly be sore fer a while, but ‘m fine.”

I nod. That was a pretty nasty fall. 

“It did look cool when you were hanging on like that though,” I tell her, making her grin. 

“I do my own stunts.” 

3rd Person Point of View

It always scares Kyle when Rebel starts bucking like that, and Laura has no way of knowing which way the big horse will go. It scares him that Laura could get hurt, and he can’t really do a thing about it. He doesn’t like not being able to help her, even if she doesn’t want help. 

She’s always been like that. Stubborn, not accepting of any type of help, even when she knows she can’t do something on her own. 

But not with Louis. Kyle doesn’t know what this foreigner has that he doesn’t, but it gets under his skin the way they just get along. They talk for hours while the group is riding across the large spread of land, mostly laughing at something that the other has said, and while Kyle loves hearing Laura laugh, loves seeing her happy, he would rather it be  _him_  that’s causing it to happen. 

Louis’ Point of View

“An’ then she was all like, ‘it ain’t yer fault, it’s me’,” Laura says, telling me a story about one time when her English teacher gave her an F on some essay that swears she wrote  _exactly_  the right way, and the talk they had about it after the class was over. “So then I was all ‘darn right it’s you, ya heifer’.”

We both break out into a fit of laughter, nearly falling out of our saddles. 

“So what happened after that?” I ask once I’ve caught my breath. 

“I got wrote up,” she admits with a grin. “But I didn’t get in no trouble.”

She smiles brightly, and something inside my chest jerks at the way her eyes look at me. 

“Then there ‘as this other time,” she starts, telling me some other crazy story about her years in high school. But I’m not quite listening as closely this time. 

“...an’ th’ rock got painted, but that didn’t really make a difference…” 

The way her eyes sparkle when she smiles while she talks about her memories, it’s got to be something straight out of a Disney movie, because it doesn’t seem real. 

“...an’ ‘e got all grumpy ‘bout it, but I dunno why, I mean it wasn’t like it was ‘ _is_  ta begin with…”

She just keeps talking, not paying attention to the way that I’m creepily staring at her. I just know I’m doing it, but I don’t want to stop. There’s probably a doofus grin on my face too. I wouldn’t be surprised if there was drool coming from my mouth. 

Her hair is constantly falling into her face from the way she keeps moving her head as she talks, her eyes bright and happy. 

“... _then_  ‘e decides ta do it how I told ‘im to, even though it ‘as a’ready  _way_  too late ta start…”

God, I love this girl. 

...

Wait,  _love_? Where did that come from? I can’t be serious. This isn’t real life, I’m going to wake up and this is all going to be a dream, isn’t it?

This can’t be real.

“Hey!” Laura says, punching my shoulder. “Race ya!”

She nudges Rebel with her heels, and they take off, breaking me out of my thoughts. 

Frodo jumps a little, wanting to go after them, and as soon as I loosen the reins, we’re galloping after Laura and Rebel. 

She’s a little ways ahead of me, but I catch up quickly, nearly passing her. Laura glances over at me, laughing as her hair flies around her face. Rebel snorts, throwing his head up, and I notice the tight hold she has on the reins. 

She’s holding him back.

She glances over at me again, this time with a smirk, before leaning low over Rebel’s neck, letting him have his head, and nudges him with her heels. 

The big horse literally jumps forward, gaining speed every time one of his hooves touches the ground, the two of them quickly lengthening the distance between them and me until Laura disappears over the top of a hill. 

I follow, trying to get Frodo to go as fast as Rebel, but the white horse can’t quite get up to that speed I guess. Either that or he just doesn't want to today. 

When I reach the spot where Laura stopped, I see her laying on her back in the tall grass, Rebel laid out next to her. She keeps pointing up at the sky, and turning her head to talk to the big horse. She’s pulled the saddle off of his back, and it’s been dropped into the grass with them, sitting a few feet from Laura’s feet. 

“ ‘Bout time ya got here,” she says when I pull Frodo to a stop, swinging my leg over his back and climbing down onto the ground. 

“Not everyone has a horse that runs as fast as yours,” I reply, pulling the saddle from Frodo’s back and dropping it on the ground before stretching out next to Laura. 

“How far back ‘s ev’ryone else?” she asks. 

“I couldn’t see them when I came over the hill,” I reply. 

“So it’ll be a while ‘fore they get here,” she says. “Whaddya wanna do?”

Well, if you’re asking what I  _literally_  want to do, I really wanna kiss you, but I’d settle for a cuddle even though it’s really hot out…

“I dunno,” I say with a shrug.

Laura raises and eyebrow. “Y’wanna fight?” she asks.

Harry’s Point of View

After the sun sets, and we start make camp for the night and are getting around for sleeping, Louis walks over to me. 

“Can we talk?” he asks, looking a little stressed.

“Sure,” I answer as I start to follow him to where we’ve tied the horses for the night. “So what’s up?” I ask once we’re out of earshot of the others. 

“It’s Laura,” he says. I raise an eyebrow. “She’s messing with my head, I can’t stop thinking about her.”

“Is that a bad thing?” I ask. When the rest of us had caught up to them, they were wrestling around in the grass.

Not in a weird way, they were literally just playing around. But Louis was either letting her win every time, or she was just that good at figuring out how to take him down.

I'm betting it was a little of both.

He shakes his head. “No, but it’s getting… I don’t know.. worse? That’s not the right word,” he says, shaking his head again. 

“It’s happening more often?” I offer. 

“Yes! Happening more often. And there’s some other thoughts in there too, and… I don’t want to say that it scares me, but it kinda does.” 

“Like what?” I ask cautiously. 

“Like, I want to make her laugh all the time, just to see the way her eyes get all crinkly at the corners. Or the way her nose scrunches up.” He stops for a second, smiling to himself. “It’s really cute,” he says quietly. “And I always want to just listen to her talk, you know? Just to hear her voice.” I don’t really blame him for that one. Laura’s voice is nice to listen to. “But what freaks me out the most, is that every time I see her, I want to kiss her, and I’m worried that one time I’m gonna do it, and she’s gonna get mad or something.”

Oh. That might be a legitimate fear. 

“Do you really think she’d get mad?” I ask.

“Not mad, but... I don’t know... I don’t know if she’d want it,” he says, glancing over at where Laura’s sitting by the fire. 

“You never know until you try,” I tell him, trying to be helpful. “Just tell her you like her, then kiss her.” That’s how it works, right?

He’s quiet for a moment, looking down at his boots. 

“I don’t think it’s just liking anymore,” he says quietly, his small smile getting wider. I feel my eyes widen. Oh.

“So… tell her you love her, then kiss her,” I say, amending my previous suggestion.

He laughs. “I don’t think it works just like that, Haz.” 


	48. Chapter 48

Laura's Point of View

When we stop at the cabin that marks the halfway point of the long ride, I'm quick to put my stuff inside. There's just enough daylight left for a dip in the water to clean up.

"You got food tanight," I tell Jeremy.

He nods with a smile from his seat at the small table with Harry, Kyle, and Zayn. "Yes ma'am."

"A'right, I'll be back. Gonna go take a shower," I say, grabbing my bar of soap and a towel.

"What? There's a shower out here?" Harry asks.

"Naw, it's a waterfall with a willow tree growin' outta it. Makes a curtain like a shower. 'T's actually perdy nice," Jeremy replies.

"Really?" Zayn asks. "Where is it?"

"Show ya later," I say, walking out the door.

"Where are you going?" Louis asks as I untie Rebel and climb onto his back, leaving the saddle in it's spot on the ground. It's been a long, hot day and I don't think my horse wants to wear the heavy leather tack for a while.

"Gonna go get cleaned up. Be back later," I say. I whistle for Yankee, and once he trots over, I nudge Rebel with my heels, and we're off.

I'll never get over how pretty it is out here. Every little detail of the land is just breathtaking. Maybe it's because I only come out here once a year.

Everything seems so alive, and it makes me feel like I'm more alive when I'm here. The trees are constantly swaying, even when there's no wind to move them. The grass is long and wild, covering the ground as far as I can see. And that's pretty far.

When I get to the small circle of ancient trees in the middle of the woods that's near the cabin, I tie Rebel to a tree, then take my things and push my way through the layer of branches and leaves, my breath hitching when I see the waterfall.

It's the best part of this drive, swimming in the small pool of water that's created at the bottom of the small waterfall. There's a willow tree growing at the top of it, and the branches fall just right, creating a curtain around the lagoon.

After telling Yankee to stay where he is and keep watch, I make my way down the small hill, setting my towel and soap on the edge of the clear water before pulling my clothes off, undoing the braid in my hair, and jumping in.

Niall's Point of View

As Laura rides off, Liam and I walk toward the small cabin.

"Louis, are you coming?" Liam calls back.

"Yeah," Louis says, shaking his head and finally turning away from watching Laura ride away. "Yeah, I'm coming."

I smile to myself. He's so gone for Laura, it's almost not funny. It's actually kind of a miracle that she hasn't noticed yet, with the way he keeps looking at her.

"So what're we gonna eat?" Kyle asks Jeremy as we walk into the cabin.

"Well, iff'n we wait long 'nuff, Laura'll come back an' we'll get somethin' homemade," the oldest Dillon replies. "But I don't wanna wait, an' I got some jerky left. We could share."

I don't mean any sort of offense, but we've been eating jerky every day since we left. I get that it's good - because it's amazing - and that we have been eating other stuff besides that, but after the seventh meal of jerky and something else, it gets a little repetitive.

I reach into the large cloth bag that Jeremy passes around, taking a few strips of jerky to eat before passing it to Liam.

"So are we all going to get to clean up?" Harry asks.

"Sure, iff'n ya want," Jeremy answers.

We sit around the small room for a while, eating and talking, until Laura gets back.

It's about twenty or so minutes later when Laura walks through the door, her hair down and half wet, half dry, smelling like soap and flowers, the aroma filling the small room.

"D'you use all th' soap?" Jeremy asks Laura. " 'Cause it sure smells like it."

"No sir," Laura replies, pulling a chair over to sit by the fire so she can dry her hair, running her fingers through it to get the tangles out. "Hardly used any. It's that kind yer Ma made. Smells real strong."

"I'll say," Louis says. He's across the small room from Laura, but he won't stop looking at her. Of course she isn't paying attention, so he's not going to stop. "What's in it?"

"There's some sorta flowery stuff, an' th' stuff that ya use ta make soap, an' somethin' else," Jeremy says with a shrug. "Hannah can tell ya what's in it. She helps Ma make it."

"How do you make soap?" I ask, curious. I've always just bought soap in the store, I've never thought of what goes into making it.

"Oh, God. It takes a  _week_ , th' whole thing," Jeremy groans. "Ma takes up th' whole livin' room with it. She's got this big pot fulla boilin' water, an' then another one fulla cold water..."

Louis' Point of View

I know I'm staring like a creep, but I can't really help it. She looks so beautiful with her hair down, especially now, when the light from the fire is hitting it just right, and making it look as if she's glowing.

I never noticed how her hair curls up around her ears when it dries. It's cute.

To me anyway.

I bet her hair is really soft when it's been washed. It's probably soft all the time, actually. It's just hard to feel it when it's up in a braid, and also when it might be taken as something strange.

I feel someone staring at me, and slowly pry my eyes away from Laura to find Kyle glaring at me. Huh?

I shoot him a smile, then turn to Jeremy, catching the last of what he's saying.

"... an' then she makes us wait fer a week 'fore we can even use it," he says.

Laura's Point of View

I can feel his eyes on me, but I don't say anything. I feel like I have to move or do something. I want to put my hair up, but I know it's not going to do much to help with the heat. And it isn't quite dry yet, so I don't want to braid it while it's wet. I know it's weird. It's how I do things.

I start to tap my foot on the floor, needing some sort of distraction from this burning feeling of someone watching me.

Usually I don't mind, but it's started to bug me lately, Louis looking at me. I get this weird pull in my gut, and I don't get why.

When we go out to make sure that the horses aren't going anywhere, I ask Jeremy about it.

He looks at me weird for a minute before answering.

"So he makes ya feel sick?"

I groan. "No, like, weird. Not sick."

"Oh." He nods. "But ya like bein' 'round 'im." I nod. "An' 'e makes ya feel weird." I nod again. "An' ya think 'is eyes 're perdy."

"They are," I answer.

"Lulu, d'ya love 'im?"

Now it's my turn to give him a weird look. "What?"

"It sounds like ya love 'im," he says, his expression serious.

I shake my head. No way. That can't happen. He's just hot, he makes me nervous with his pretty face. That's what it is. It's not love. That's... no.

"You a'right?" Jeremy asks. "You look like yer gonna cry."

I shake my head. " 'm fine." I don't love him, that's not what this is.

We're quiet for the rest of the time that we're outside, both of us keeping our thoughts to ourselves, even when we head back inside.

"There you are!" Louis says once he sees me. Something kicks inside my gut when he looks at me, and I automatically smile.

"Here I am," I say.  _Lame, Laura, Lame!_

We all eat our supper, and then we kind of just sit around and talk for a while, letting our food digest before we all pile into bed.

When my eyes start to droop, I say my goodnights and kick my boots off before climbing into the big bed, curling up in the middle.

It isn't long before I hear someone else walk in, and judging by the quiet scuffs of his feet, it's Louis.

"Are you still awake?" he asks as he crawls in next to me.

"No, 'm sleepin' with my eyes open," I say, my stomach feeling like it's going to jump out of my mouth when he laughs.

"Oh, ok. You do sleep talk sometimes, so it's not a big surprise," he says as he flops down onto the mattress, making both of us bounce around a little.

"What?"

"Yeah. When we were at the fair, you woke me up one night, talking about monkeys and purple bananas," he replies with a grin.

"No way."

He nods. "Yeah. You did. We had a conversation. While you were asleep."

"No," I laugh. "Have I said anythin' else?"

He shakes his head. "The stuff you did say made no sense at all to me."

"It us'ly don't," I say.

"It's funny though," he says. "Gonna miss it when we have to leave."

That hits me right in the stomach, and I feel like I can't breathe for a few seconds. He has to leave. I suddenly really want him to stay here, with me.

"Hey, don't cry," he says, his thumb moving to wipe off a tear that I didn't know had slipped out.

" 'm not," I say, trying frantically to come up with an excuse, because I  _don't_  cry.

"What's wrong?" he asks, wisely not saying anything about how it probably looks like I really am going to cry.

"Nothin'," I tell him. I sigh. Might as well just tell him, he won't judge me for it, he's not like that. "I jus' don't like talkin' 'bout people leavin'."

"Oh." He pauses, looking at me, probably trying to figure out if he should ask why or not. "How come?"

I half smile. "You sure you wanna know?" He nods, his expression serious, but curious at the same time. "Might start cryin', be prepared."

He opens his arms, motioning for me to come closer. "You better c'mere then."

I scoot over, letting myself be cuddled. It's not that bad, I suppose. Louis does smell good.

"I ain't sure where ta start," I mumble.

"How about the beginning?" Louis suggests. "That's usually a good place to start."

"No shit," I laugh, my chest tightening when he laughs too.

"I s'pose it started with Mama," I say after a little bit. "I dunno if she left 'r what, but I always got the feelin' that she didn't want me 'r somethin' like that, an' that's why she ain't here."

"Why wouldn't she have wanted you?" he asks, his voice muffled by my hair.

"I dunno. Mighta had somethin' ta do with th' fact that I weren't s'posed ta be a girl."

"What?' he asks.

"Nani said that the whole time Mama was pregnant she an' Daddy was convinced they was havin' a boy. Had a name picked out 'n evrythin'. Then they got me."

"You're not so bad," he says absentmindedly. "What was your name gonna be?"

"Don't laugh," I warn. "My name was gonna be Louis."

"No way." He pulls back to look at my face. "That's crazy."

I nod. "Yeah, it is."

"Anyway, continue," he says, pulling me back into his chest. I take a deep breath, then let it out in a huff.

"That's where it started, I s'pose. It got worse after Wyatt left," I say. " 'e didn't say nothin', jus' left!  _Nothin_ '!"

"Easy, slow down," Louis says, petting my hair. "Why'd he leave?"

"I dunno," I reply. "I thought ev'rythin' was fine. I mean, we had sex, for fuck's sake. I thought 'e was serious 'bout us, like..." I trail off, not wanting to mention that I thought he was going to ask me to marry him. I was naive back then, obsessed with the idea that I could have already found my Mr. Right, my one.

"When did he leave?" Louis asks. "Was it right after... that?"

I shake my head. "No, it was 'bout three months after. 'e jus'... stopped talkin' ta me. I weren't too worried at first, I thought maybe 'e broke 'is phone 'r somethin', cause 'e used ta do that a lot. So I didn't think too much of it. But after 'bout a week, I figured somethin' was up. So I went ta 'is house." I stop, taking a deep breath. "An' it was empty."

I feel Louis' arms tighten around me, and I'm thankful that he doesn't ask questions this time, or push me to keep going. He's letting me tell him the story at my own pace, and I appreciate it.

"I looked ev'rywhere fer somethin' that would tell me where 'e went. I even went ta 'is parents' house. They didn't have a clue where 'e went. 'e never told 'em much anyway," I add as an afterthought. "After that I went ta th' store an' cleaned out their ice cream freezer, then stayed in my room fer a week."

I know it probably wasn't healthy, but it made me feel better. Something about ice cream does that.

"I jus' sat there in my room, tryin' ta figure out what I did, what I didn't do, that woulda made 'im jus' leave." I can feel the tears starting to poke at the back of my eyes, and blink rapidly, trying to keep them in check. "I kept coming back ta me. What was  _wrong_  with  _me_  that 'e jus' left like that."

I don't mention that I also racked my brain for something that I could have done (or not done) when we...  _did it_.. that would have made Wyatt want to leave me. I couldn't figure anything out, but I had no idea what it was supposed to be like, it was my first time. That was what messed me up the most, I think. The idea that I just didn't know enough to keep him satisfied, and that was what made him leave.

"Please don't cry," Louis says, squeezing me tighter as my breathing gets heavier. "I don't like it when you cry." The way he says it makes it sound like he's hurting too, though I have no clue why. "There's nothing wrong with you, you're lovely."

I laugh half heartedly. "Thanks."

"No seriously. I mean it," he says. "You're a nice girl. You aren't mean.. to most people... and you've done so much for other people. You run an entire ranch, for pete's sake."

"That ain't nothin'," I protest.

"Yeah it is, Laura. How many other people could do the stuff you do? All at the same time the way you do it? You're the only person I've met who can do what you do."

I look up at him, a small smile on my face. "Thanks."

The way he looks down at me, his face red from his little speech, with a bright smile on his face, convinces me.

"Just telling the truth," he says, his voice quieter than a few moments ago.

"Either that or yer a real good liar," I say with a smile, snuggling back into his chest. I feel him laugh, knowing that he knows I was joking.

He sort of snuggles into me, and I close my eyes, figuring that we're gonna go to sleep.

"Laura?" he asks after a bit, his voice quiet.

"Hmm?"

"Did you love him?"

I'm quiet for a minute, wondering why he would ask something like that, before I answer.

"I thought I did."

The next morning, after I've untangled myself from the dog pile of sleeping boys, I make breakfast, and soon we're back to riding again. We should make it to the far edge of the range by about noon, which gives us time to rest the horses for a good couple hours before we start rounding up the cattle that are there. It's a normal day, except for one thing.

The first time I see it, I'm saddling Rebel. I look over his back, and there's a black horse standing at the edge of the woods. I stop and stare for a minute, trying to figure out where it would have come from. There's no one around here with horses that big, or that color. Everyone I know has brown or white horses.

Then it turns, and I have to look away for a second. I've seen that cross shaped paint on a horse before. But it wasn't in reality.

When I look back, the horse is gone.

The next time I'm looking over Louis' shoulder, and he must think I'm crazy, because he looks over, and when he turns back, he asks what I'm looking at, like he can't see the horse.

I tell him that there's a black horse, right there, but when I look back over, it's gone again.

Louis raises an eyebrow at me, and in return I punch his shoulder, insisting that it was there.

The third time, we've stopped to let the horses drink a little from the river we've been following. When I spot it this time, I nudge Rebel with my heels, trotting toward it. But as I get closer, it turns, moving away from me. I follow it to the edge of the woods, until I lose the tracks and have to turn back.

No one questions me when I join the group again, they just look over and acknowledge that I'm there again, then keep going the way they were.

When we stop at the big cabin at the edge of the range, I've begun to look for the big horse, trying to spot it again. But I can't see anything.

We put the horses in the corral, then take our stuff into the cabin, each of us claiming our bunks before we sit down to eat lunch.

"So where'd you go earlier?" Louis asks as he sits down next to me. "And don't say you were out scouting ahead, because you went backwards from the way we were going."

Well, there goes that. He  _was_  paying attention.

"There was a horse. Wanted to figure out whose it was."

"Is it the same horse you saw earlier?" he asks, and I can't tell if he's teasing me or not.

"There was a horse, 'm not crazy," I mutter, biting a chunk out of my sandwich.

"No, I believe you. I just didn't see it," he says. "What's it look like?"

I look at him, trying to gauge whether or not he's serious right now. He looks pretty serious, either that or he's a really good actor. He did mention being into drama when he was in school...

I swallow my bite of sandwich.

"It's big an' black. Got a white cross painted on it's flank, an' a white diamond on it's forehead."

"Oh. Is there anything special about it? Have you seen it before?" he asks.

"Not when I was awake."


	49. Chapter 49

Zayn's Point of View

As we round up the cattle that have been living here, I can't help but notice Kyle glaring at Louis every chance he gets. That's new.

So when we've got a few minutes to rest, I decide to ask him about it.

"Hey," I greet as I sit down next to him at the small table inside the cabin. We're the only two in here, everyone else is outside, watering the horses.

"Hey," he replies, running the blade of his knife down a small stick of wood, cutting part of it off and letting it fall to the floor.

"So um, I don't know how to be subtle about this, but I've noticed you seem to not like Louis," I say. "And I was wondering why."

He looks at me, then turns back to his whittling. "It ain't nothin'," he mutters.

I raise an eyebrow, even though he's not looking at me to see it. "It's probably something if you've been glaring at the poor bloke all day."

Kyle sighs. "I don't get what she sees in 'im," he mumbles, dragging his knife across the wood angrily. "I've known 'er fer damn near  _four years_ , an' I ain't got  _nowhere_."

Oh.

"Then this... this  _foreigner_ shows up, an' she's like a filly in heat, always with 'im, even when she's barely known 'im fer two  _months_!"

 _Oh_.

"Look, you seem like a nice guy," I start, trying to keep him from getting any more worked up about it. "But maybe... maybe it's not supposed to work out like you want it to."

He shoots me a glare, twirling his knife between his fingers as if trying to threaten me.

"I'm not just saying that because this involves Louis. It happens all the time. People like other people, and sometimes it just doesn't happen. Look what happened with Laura and Rob."

He goes quiet, still twirling the knife, but his face is thoughtful instead of murderous.

"I still don't get it," he says quietly. "What's 'e got that I don't?"

"I can't answer that," I reply. I honestly can't I have no idea what Laura's looking for in a guy. "I know you probably don't like it, but she's happy, right? Isn't that a good thing? That counts for something, right?"

Kyle nods, then sighs. "I s'pose so," he admits.

"Hey, you two gonna come an' eat?" Laura's voice calls from the doorway.

"Yeah," Kyle says, standing to his feet. "Be right out."

Laura nods, then walks off. Kyle starts to move toward the door, but I put a hand out.

"Hey," I say, stopping him. "I know you don't really know me, but... if you ever want to just talk, I'll listen."

He looks back at me like I've just offered him a million dollars. He nods, a small smile growing on his face. "Thanks."

 

When we've gotten all the cattle that we can find into the large corral, it's almost dark outside, and all of us are worn out, ready for sleeping.

"Ya reckon someone oughta keep watch?" Jeremy asks Laura as we're settling into our bunks. "This 's us'ly th' night."

Laura's quiet for a moment as Yankee walks over to them, sitting at their feet and looking up at them.

"Might 's well get some sleep. Th' dogs'll wake us up iff'n there's anythin'," she replies.

Jeremy nods, and the two of them climb into their bunks.

 

Louis' Point of View

A soft but insistent shake of my shoulder makes me open my eyes, though I can't really see a difference with how dark it is in here.

I open my mouth to ask why whoever this is decided to wake me up, but then a hand goes over my mouth, and I hear someone quietly shush me.

As my eyes start to focus, I can make out the shape of someone sitting on my bunk next to where I'm laying, and after blinking a few times, I recognize Laura's silhouette, barely illuminated by the few rays of moonlight peeking through the small window.

She puts a finger over her lips, and I nod, telling her I'll be quiet.

She moves back as I sit up, looking toward the door. I see Yankee pacing back and forth in front of it, his bared teeth gleaming white in the dim light.

I look around the room and see Kyle sitting at the table, Lassie nearly in his lap as he sharpens his knife, several others laying on the table in front of him, and a large, almost club-like stick leaning on his chair. Jeremy is moving around the room, Blue at his heels, waking up the rest of the lads.

"What's going on?" I ask Laura, my voice a quiet whisper.

"Advgi," (listen) she replies.

I sit very still, straining my ears until I hear a low growl from outside the wall of the cabin, followed by an eerie howl that sends chills down my spine and makes the hair at the back of my neck stand straight up.

"Wayaha." (Coyote)

"What do we do?" I ask.

"Depends on how many there are," she says. "We jus' gotta keep 'em from gettin' at th' cattle."

Everyone is up now, and looking expectantly at Laura. There's sort of an atmosphere of anticipation, as if we all know what's going on without being told.

"How many are there?" Liam asks.

"I ain't sure," Laura answers, strangely calm for a situation like this. "Somebody oughta go see."

"I'll go," Kyle says.

"Be careful," Laura cautions.

Kyle slowly opens the door, sticking his head out, before stepping out into the darkness, Lassie following him.

There isn't any noise for a moment, and then a loud growl comes from seemingly right on the other side of the door.

Kyle yells, and there's a thud, then he's back inside, closing the door quickly behind himself.

"How many?" Jeremy asks.

"Ten. I seen ten of 'em," his brother reports.

"Ten," Laura repeats.

"What's the plan, boss?" Jeremy asks. Everyone turns to Laura.

"Who's goin' out?" she asks. "Don't make me draw a line fer people ta cross, I ain't doin' that shit."

"I'm going," I say, pulling myself out of my bunk and onto my feet. I'm going to keep Laura safe, no matter how scary it seems.

"Me too," Liam and Niall say at nearly the same time, both of them standing to their feet as well, Zayn silently doing the same.

"Stay inside and watch, or possibly get mauled by a wild animal," Harry muses. "I'm in."

"A'right then," Laura says. "Stick together, watch each other's backs. Be careful."

Everyone moves toward the door, grabbing knives off the table as we go. I grab one as well, even though I already have the one Laura's father gave me. Better to be prepared.

"Why do we have to use knives?" Niall asks.

"It's illegal ta shoot 'em," Kyle says.

"We ain't tryin' ta kill 'em, 'nless they start attackin', we're jus' gettin' 'em ta leave th' cattle alone," Laura explains.

That makes it seems so much easier, but judging by the low growls I'm hearing from the other side of the door, it's not going to be that simple. The other lads seem to have figured out the same thing, because their faces are serious, like they know we're probably going to have to fight.

Jeremy and Kyle are the first out the door, followed by the other lads. I move to follow them, but Laura stops me, her hand on my arm.

"You be careful," she warns sternly.

I nod. "I will be," I assure her.

She wraps her arms around me, putting her face in the crook of my neck. "Gvgeyu'i," she murmurs.

I want to ask her what it means, because she's never said anything that sounds remotely close to that before, but she's moved to Yankee, kneeling down in front of him.

"Watsi gawohilvdodi nasgiasgaya," (Watch over him) she says quietly, nodding toward me. Yankee seems to understand, giving her a small yip in response before licking her face and moving to stand by me.

I look at her, astonished. She's giving up having her dog protect her so that  _I_ can stay safer? I want to ask why, but Laura's already walking out the door, knife in her hand, and I follow, Yankee moving when I do, closing the door behind myself once we're outside.

Once I step out of the cabin, it's as if I'm in an entirely different world.

It's not quiet, but there's no noise at all. It's strange, like I can hear everything, but my ears feel like I've got headphones on. I don't like it.

I can see shadows moving along the fence line, low to the ground, and Yankee growls lowly. Laura tenses a little, looking over her shoulder for a second before looking over to a big tree, where Jeremy is at with the rest of the lads and his brother.

The tall boy nods, then he and Kyle advance forward, moving closer to the shadows, their dogs following them. Laura and I move toward the others, falling in behind them as we all watch the two Dillons split up, going around opposite sides of the corral.

The cattle are mooing, shoving against each other as they try to move away from the shadows.

Laura keeps turning her head, looking around, even though it's too dark out to really see anything except shadows. After a few seconds, she starts looking the same way every time, as if there's something there.

"What is it?" I start to ask, but she holds up a hand, and I fall silent. She points in the direction she's been looking, and I follow her finger, squinting until I can make out two shadows moving toward us, similar to the ones that are moving around where the cattle are.

"Get down," she whispers quietly, nudging the others as she moves so she's closer to the ground, crouching down while staying on her feet. The lads and I copy her, moving until we're shorter than Yankee, hidden in the shadow of the thick trunk of the tree. But I find after a few long, silent minutes that it's hard to keep my balance like this.

I hear an angry bark from over where Jeremy and Kyle went, and see the two shadows look toward the sound. They look back at each other, as if they're communicating, and then one of them trots over, going to see what it is, passing right in front of me.

They're pretty big, these coyotes. at least the same size as Yankee, if not bigger. Or maybe it just seems that way because I'm closer to the ground.

I can feel the muscles in my leg twitching, getting close to the limit of how long I can hold still before I have to move. But I don't dare move, not wanting to be seen. The heat from Laura's body is burning into to me, our arms touching in the close space.

She's not making any sort of noise, it's almost as if she isn't there. If I wasn't right next to her, I would think that she'd left or something.

The other shadow is still where it stopped, but now it's looking toward where we are, slowly starting to move in our direction. I barely catch Laura starting to move in front of me, but I quietly shift so that she has nowhere to go, my hand going to grasp the handle of the knife her father gave me.

Nothing's getting to her unless it goes through me first.

"Back up," I hear her quietly whisper to the lads. I don't hear them move, but I can feel the heat of their bodies leave, moving away from me.

My legs are full out shaking now, cramped with the exertion of holding my crouched position for so long without moving, so it isn't a surprise when I go to back up and one of my legs completely gives out, and I fall forward.

I brace myself for the impact of my shoulder hitting the ground, the coyote seeing me and tearing me open, but it never comes. Instead, there's a sharp tug on my shirt, and Laura hauls me back up, keeping me in the shadow of the tree, pulling me right to her, our noses touching.

Her eyes widen, but she doesn't move away. If anything, she seems to move closer, her eyes flicking down as she looks at my face, as if she's debating whether to kiss me or not.

Please do. I'd be alright with that.

It doesn't happen though, because there's a low growl from the other side of the tree, then a shout, and then Laura's gone, and I'm left to scramble to my feet and follow her.

There's about five coyotes snarling at Laura and the lads when I join them, all of us standing with our backs to each other, no weak spots to be attacked.

I hear another loud yell, and the Jeremy and Kyle are running toward us, a few more coyotes following them.

Before I can blink, we're surrounded by them, all snarling and growling at us. I can barely hear Laura murmuring something under her breath, maybe some sort of prayer, but I'm starting to get really scared.

What if we don't make it out of this? What's going to happen then?

I shake my head. I'll think about that when I have to, not now.

"Say when," Jeremy calls to Laura.

Laura looks at the four coyotes that are directly in front of her and I, then she turns to me.

"I got th' two on th' left," she says as she twirls her knife between her fingers.

Without giving me chance to answer, she yells, "now!"

She jumps forward, an almost animalistic growl ripping itself from her throat as she lunges at the two coyotes. They jump back at first, then move forward, snarling and snapping their jaws at her.

Then there are two coming at me, and I'm not sure how, but I end up standing with my back pressed to Harry's, Yankee between us, fighting back against them. Every time they come close enough or jump at me, I swing with a knife. I knock a few of them down, and get a few hits on others, making them leave me alone. When I see a few of them start to run away, I feel a little less scared about the whole situation.

I try to keep an eye on Laura, and from the yelps and loud shouts I'm hearing from where she is, I think she's doing just fine.

That is, until I see a large shadow creeping up behind her.

I push Harry toward the other lads, hoping he gets the message to join up with them, and run toward Laura, jumping when the coyote lunges for her.

I feel sharp teeth dig into my right shoulder, and claws slice through my shirt before I hit the ground, a large, furry weight on top of me.

I somehow manage to get my feet underneath it, and push it off of me and onto the ground, where it lands with a yelp.

It moves toward me again, and I grasp my knife in my left hand as I sit up, gritting my teeth at the pain in my shoulder. No time to worry about it now.

I brace myself the best that I can when the coyote jumps, ready for the hit.

But there isn't one.

A rather loud yell, like a war cry or something, comes from behind me, and I see a large shadow jump over me, and takes the coyote down, landing on the ground with it.

I see the flash of light glinting off of Laura's knife blade, and then it's deathly quiet.

Footsteps, human footsteps, break the silence as the rest of our group runs over. They move toward me first once they see my shoulder.

I don't move though. I stay where I am, even when Jeremy begins tugging at my good arm. I keep my eyes on Laura, who isn't moving. She's stock still, just staring down at the ground in front of her, stained red with blood.

I brush Jeremy's hands off of me, then move toward Laura, hissing when I put weight on my injured arm in an attempt to pull myself closer.

"C'mon, you need ta get that bandaged," Jeremy says, but his words fall on deaf ears.

"I'll be fine, just give me a minute," I say, even though I can feel blood running down my arm, dripping off my fingers.

I hear the lads move inside, probably to get cleaned up and patched up, and I move so that I'm next to Laura.

She still hasn't moved from her spot, staring wide eyed at the dead coyote in front of her, her hands shaking in her lap, knife lying forgotten on the ground.

"Laura," I say, my voice strained. That seems to break her from her daze, and she turns to me, her eyes wide.

She blinks, then leans over, wrapping her arms around my neck.

"Gvgeyu'i," she says again before pressing her lips to mine.

 

I feel someone shaking my shoulder, and when I open my eyes again, I'm in my bunk.

I try to sit up, grimacing and clutching at my shoulder when it protests.

"Easy," a gentle voice says. Then there are hands on my chest, softly pushing me back down onto my pillows.

"Laura?" I ask groggily.

"It's me," she replies. "You feelin' a'right?"

I nod. Except for my shoulder, I'm fine.

"That's good," she says with a nod. "Ya passed out on me earlier. Thought you was hurt worse'n ya let on."

"What?" I ask. So she didn't really kiss me?

"Ya passed out after ya got bit," she repeats. "Was startin' ta think ya had an infection 'r somethin'."

"What happened after that?" I ask. It never hurts to make sure.

"Yer yellin' scared most of 'em off," she tells me. "Chased the rest of 'em off, then came back in here."

Oh. So no kiss. Damn.

I look up at her, my eyes adjusting to the dim light.

She looks tired, like she's been up all night. Dark circles are under her eyes, and her smile doesn't seem quite as bright.

"Are  _you_ alright?"

She nods. " 'M fine. Jus' was worried 'bout you." This brings a slight smile to my face. She cares. About me. Maybe she loves me like I love her.

"How's yer shoulder?" she asks.

"It doesn't hurt at the moment," I say, watching her expression of concern melt into relief.

"That's good."

"Are you gonna stay here?" I ask, hoping she will stay with me.

"Iff'n its a'right... Can I?" she asks, looking hopeful. I nod.

"Sure. Course you can."

She smiles, then lays down beside me, sliding under my blanket with me. I feel her cautiously lay her head on my shoulder, as if she's unsure if its alright or not, and hesitantly put an arm over me. I smile, then put my good arm around her, pulling her closer to me.

My hand brushes against her arm, and I feel goosebumps form on her skin.

"Are you cold?" I ask. She hesitates, then nods a little. "Come 'ere." I pull her on top of me, burying my nose in her hair. "Better?" I ask as she snuggles into me, laying her head on my chest, her ear above my heart. I bet she's wondering why it's beating so fast.

"Yeah. Night - night."

"Night, Laura."

As I feel her fall asleep, I lay awake and stare at the bunk above us, thinking. Or trying to think. I don't know.

Once her breathing evens out, slow and steady, I look down at her. She always looks so peaceful when she sleeps. The scowl that she usually wears is gone without a trace, and her mouth is half open, quiet puffs of air tickling my chest as she breathes.

I wonder what she's dreaming about.

 

"Look at them!" I hear a faint voice say. Maybe Liam.

"I know, it's cute, isn't it?" That sounds like Niall.

"Shush! Yer gonna wake 'em up!" That's definitely Jeremy.

"Somebody get a picture before they wake up!" No Harry, don't.

"Got it." I hear the click of a phone camera, and open one eye.

"Shit! Abort mission! He's awake!" I see the other lads scramble to hide, jumping into their bunks or running out the door.

"Haha, real funny guys," I say, my voice groggy and low from just waking up.

Harry's face pops out from under his blanket, his green eyes shining.

"You gotta admit though, you two are pretty cute," he says. I look down at the sleeping girl on my chest.

"Yeah..." I say, feeling a smile grow on my face.

"Did you tell her yet?" Harry asks as Laura starts to stir.

"Tell me what?" she asks, her eyes still closed. She nuzzles into my neck, humming in content.

"That you snore when you sleep," I say, thinking quickly.

"I do not!" Her face is suddenly in front of mine, her expression amused.

"Just a little. 'S cute though," I tell her truthfully, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. She scrunches her nose, looking absolutely adorable.

"Snorin's cute?"

"Just when it's you," I say with a smile. She keeps the adorable expression, probably meant to be disgusted, on her face.

"A'right then..." She looks over at Niall, who's hiding under the blankets on his bunk. "What're ya doin'?"

He jumps out of bed, nearly hitting his head on the bunk above him. "Nothing!" he answers quickly before running out the door.

"Well," she says, sitting up and stretching, " 'm gonna.... go make breakfast." She crawls over me, setting her feet on the floor and pulling her boots on before walking out the door.

"Did you tell her?" Harry asks again. I sigh.

"No, I didn't."

"Then what was... that?"

"I don't know. She woke me up last night, then... she kind of just ended up... here?" That doesn't even make sense to me. It's all a little fuzzy in my memory. I was half asleep, can you blame me?

"She looked proper worried last night, after you... yeah," he says quietly.

"Was it bad?" I ask. "Did I look bad?"

He nods. "There was blood everywhere. You got cut up pretty bad. Laura wouldn't calm down until you got cleaned up and found out that it was just a few scratches. It just bled a lot, that was the bad part."

I nod. She was worried about me.

I don't know if that's good, because that means she cares. Or bad, because I gave her a reason to worry.


	50. Chapter 50

Laura's Point of View

As we pack up all our gear to start heading back to the ranch, I get a weird feeling that I'm forgetting something.

I don't know what it is, I have my sleeping bag, my tent that I never use, all my other stuff.

Even when we've left, ridden for a day, and I'm getting around to go to sleep, I can't shake the feeling that something is missing. That I've left something behind.

When I eventually fall asleep, it's no different.

"You forgot me, Lomasi," I hear the lady say as she appears in front of me.

"What? I ask. "I don't even know who you are, how could I forget you?"

She shakes her head, the ever present smile still on her face. "You're so close. You've almost found me.

"What? I'm s'posed ta find you?"

"Yes. You have to find me," she repeats.

"Well, where are you?" I ask.

"Follow him," she says, petting her horse. "He'll lead you there."

I go to ask why I have to find her, what it all means, but then Yankee's licking my face again and waking me up.

"Goddammit," I groan, "why d'you always to this?"

He doesn't reply, just trots off to jump onto Blue and Lassie, waking both of them up.

I sigh, rubbing the sleep from my eyes with my fists. The sun's coming up, so I'd have had to get up soon anyway. I get up, still wearing the clothes I wore yesterday, my boots still on my feet. Sleeping in them keeps anything from getting into them, and it's easier to get around in the morning.

I walk over to where Jeremy's laying, and nudge his shoulder with the toe of my boot.

"Wake up."

He groans and rolls over, and I move on to Kyle, doing the same thing, and getting nearly the exact same reaction.

Once they're up, I start filling the coffee pot with water, then set it over the coals from last night's fire, dropping a couple tea bags into it before putting some small logs underneath it, striking a match and starting a new fire.

The two Dillons wander over as I'm filling the second coffee pot, this time putting a bag of coffee grounds into it.

"You want us ta wake 'em up?" Jeremy asks.

"Prob'ly oughta," I agree. "I'll start on breakfast."

Jeremy nods, then moves toward Louis.

"Hey," I call, stopping him. "Let 'im sleep a 'lil more," I add when Jeremy looks back at me. I don't add that he looks happier when he's asleep, like he has no worries at all.

Jeremy raises an eyebrow, but doesn't say anything, moving to wake up Liam instead.

When everyone except Louis is awake, I send them off with their mugs of coffee to get the horses and bring them back, waiting until they're out of sight before pouring out a mug of coffee for myself.

Might as well wake Louis up.

Louis' Point of View

When I open my eyes, all I can see is a mass of dark hair in front of my face. I feel something warm and wet moving along my neck, toward my shoulder.

I groan, not ready to wake up yet, and suddenly Laura's face is right in front of mine.

"Mornin'," she says, her lips red and swollen, her eyes dark.

"Hi," I reply, more than a little confused.

She smiles, then ducks down, pressing her lips to my neck again, mouthing at my skin.  _Oh_.

"Laura," I breathe.

"Shh..." she says. "Ain't got ferever. They'll be back 'fore ya know it."

Her hands slide down my chest, tracing over my stomach, and I'm thankful as hell that I didn't sleep in a shirt so I can feel her as she touches me.

"Where are they?" I ask, my voice low and husky.

"Sent 'em ta go find th' horses," she says with a grin. She planned this. She  _wants_  this. Wants  _me_.

It seems to take a monumental amount of effort to do so, but I reach my hand over, tangling it in her hair and using it to pull her up so I can kiss her.

She doesn't seem to mind, humming as she moves her mouth against mine, her eyes fluttering closed.

A few seconds pass before she pulls back to breathe, muttering something as she does.

"What?" I ask.

She smiles. "Gvgeyu'i," she repeats before kissing me again. What does that  _mean_?

Her fingers reach my jeans, and I feel her fumble around a little before she finds the button and zipper, undoing them quickly once she does.

She then moves both hands to my hair, tugging at it as she begins to grind her hips on mine.

I gasp, overwhelmed by the feeling, and she moves her mouth down to my neck, pulling my head back to expose my throat.

"Unngg... Laura," I moan.

"Wanted ta wake ya up like this," she says, sucking a mark into the skin of my shoulder.

She keeps moving lower, until she lets go of my hair to pull my jeans and boxers down.

Her eyes widen when my cock springs out, nearly hitting her in the face.

She doesn't waste any time, immediately licking a stripe from the base all the way to the head before wrapping her lips around the tip.

Laura looks up at me, batting her eyes as she starts to bob her head.

"Wake up, ya lil' shit."

I feel something hit my shoulder.

My eyes snap open, and I see Laura stands over me, two mugs in her hands, hair up in a braid, her mouth very much empty.

It was just a dream.

"Y'a'right?" she asks, squatting down to hand me one of the steaming mugs.

"That isn't very nice," I say with a frown.

"Fine. Yer a big shit," she amends with a grin. "Happy?"

"I guess." I'd be happier if I was still dreaming. I sip the tea that's in the mug, nearly spitting it back out once it burns my tongue.

"Hey, that might be hot," Laura laughs. "Be careful."

"Thanks," I say sarcastically. "Really helpful."

"Yer welcome," she replies with a smile. "How's yer shoulder?"

I move it around a little. " 't's alright."

"That's good," she says. "Should prob'ly change th' bandage soon."

"Can you help me with that?" I ask. I don't think I'll be able to wrap it up the right way on my own. And I kind of like it when she does it.

She nods. "Sure," she answers, taking a sip of her coffee.

She looks down at something in her hand, then huffs out a sigh.

"You good?" I ask.

"Yeah, 'm good," she says. She looks down again, then sits down on the ground, stretching her long legs out in front of her. "I um... I got somethin'...I wanna give ya." She moves her hand in front of her, opening it to show me the braided deer hide that she's been working on for about a week.

"I don't want to sound mean, but what is it?" I ask. "Like, I know it's a braid, but what is it?"

"A necklace," she replies, understanding what I meant. "Y'ain't gotta wear it, I jus' thought ya might want it. 'Cause it 'as yer first deer hunt, an' all," she adds quickly.

"No, no, I'll wear it," I say. "I just didn't know what it was, is all."

This brings the smile right back to her face, her eyes sparkling again as she hands it to me. I loop it around my neck, and, with only a little bit of difficulty, I tie the ends behind my head.

"How do I look?" I ask, striking what I think is a good superhero pose.

"It's a'right," Laura says, shrugging.

"Hey!" I laugh.

" 'm jus' kiddin'. Looks nice," she amends, looking at me with a strange emotion in her eyes, a soft smile on her face.

Just as I notice it, she blinks, turning to grab her mug from where she's set it on the ground next to her.

"You hungry?" she asks, pulling herself to her feet, brushing the dust off of her legs. "Breakfast should be 'bout done."

"Sure," I reply, kicking my feet out of my sleeping bag and following her as she walks over to the wagon.

Harry's Point of View

"She what?" I ask in astonishment. Louis has just finished telling me what happened between him and Laura this morning while the rest of us were gone.

The two of us are riding drag, which is basically just following the herd while the others ride along the sides of the large group. The wagon with the ponies is behind us, driven by Jeremy. We've been riding all morning and afternoon, not really stopping for lunch, eating our sandwiches in the saddle instead.

"I'm not kidding. And then she got this weird look, and she went all soft, and..." he smiles.

"You really are gone for her," I tease. "Can't even properly finish a sentence."

"I can too!" he protests. "She just looked so... " he sighs - again. "So pretty."

"Oh God," I groan. "Not this again." It does nothing to get rid of the dreamy look on his face, but I don't really mind. He hasn't been this happy for a long time. "So she gave you a necklace thing."

"Yeah," he says, his hand automatically moving to touch the braided leather.

"Does it mean anything?"

"What?"

"Like, her giving you that. Does it mean anything? Is it some Cherokee thing?" I ask.

He shrugs. "I dunno. Maybe?"

He turns in his saddle, looking behind us before facing forward again. "I'd ask Jeremy, but I dunno if he knows."

"That might be a good idea," I agree.

"I've still gotta ask Laura what that means," he mutters.

"What what means?" I ask.

"Uwesti," he says. "Her dad called me that, and I don't know what it means. It's been bugging me since we left."

"What's been buggin' ya?" Laura asks as she rides up next to us, on the opposite side of Louis from me.

"What's uwesti mean?" Louis asks.

"Means son," she answers.

"Like, kid son? Or up in the sky sun?"

"Like, kid son," Laura clarifies with a grin. Oh.

I see Louis' eyes go wide. "Oh," he says.

Laura nods, then Zayn's calling for her, and she's trotting up to him, leaving us for the moment.

"He called me his fucking son," Louis says quietly.

"Uh huh..."

"Does that mean he's okay with this? With me and Laura?" he asks, thinking out loud.

I shrug. "I dunno. Maybe she's talked to him about you or something. Maybe he just thinks you're alright."

"That would make sense," Louis nods. "He said she'd taken a shine to me... whatever the hell that means."

"Doesn't that mean she likes you?" I ask. Jeremy's said something like that about Ann when he was talking to Niall. "Maybe she talked about you and he thinks she likes you or something."

"But does she?" he asks.

Zayn's Point of View

When we stop and make camp for the night, Kyle and I are put on the first watch of the night. So after it gets dark, we saddle up again and ride out to - well, watch the herd.

"Y'know how ya said iff'n I wanted ta talk, you'd listen?" Kyle asks after a little while.

"Do you want to talk?"

In the dark, I see him nod. "Yeah."

"Alright. Go for it, I'm all ears," I say, getting comfortable in my saddle.

"Well, you said that it might not be s'posed ta happen, like, with me an' Laura," he starts.

I nod.

"Well, I get that that might be true, but I can't... I can't not think 'bout it."

"Have you tried thinking about something else?" I ask. "Maybe getting into something that might take your mind off it?"

"Like what?"

"Like, something else that you like. What do you like to do?"

"Uh... like what?"

"Like, hobbies? Do you like sports?" I try. He's not giving me much to work with.

"I uh.. I like rodeo," he says.

"Is that something you can do?"

"I think so. There's a rodeo in town," he says. " 've always wanted ta try bull ridin'."

"Then go for it," I encourage. "If you want it, you should do it."

He half smiles. "Laura wouldn't like it," he admits.

"Screw what Laura thinks," I tell him. "It's your life."

"Yeah," he muses. "It's my life. I can do what I want."

"Don't do anything stupid, but yeah, do what you want."

"You know, yer a'right, Zayn," he says. I think it's the first time he's called me - any of us lads - by name.

"Thanks. You're alright too." I pat him on the shoulder with a grin.

3rd Person Point of View

When Louis walks over to where Jeremy is sitting once they make camp, the blonde can tell that he's about to get an earful about Laura. He can see it in the look on Louis' face.

"What'd she do this time?" he asks before Louis even sits down, catching the lad off guard.

"What?" Louis asks.

"What'd Laura do?" he reiterates. "Besides th' necklace. I seen that. What'd she do?"

"Oh," Louis says, a bit dumbly, he thinks. "I was actually gonna ask you about it. Does it mean anything?"

"Whaddya mean, does it mean anythin'?"

"Like, is there some hidden meaning behind it? Like, her giving me something? Does that means something?" Louis asks, a little frazzled. He hasn't stopped thinking about it since Harry mentioned it, and it's starting to grate on him.

Jeremy shrugs. "I dunno. Did she say anythin'... different when she gave it to ya?"

Louis' eyes dart over to Laura's sleeping form a few feet away from where they're sitting.

"She said she thought I would want it, cause it was my first deer hunt. But she was all 'you don't have to wear it if you don't want to.' Does that mean anything?"

"So she 'as nervous that ya wouldn't want it?" Jeremy asks. Louis nods. "Well, that's somethin' different. She don't usu'ly get nervous."

"So I make her nervous," Louis muses, nodding his head.

"Course, it might be somethin' else," Jeremy adds, not wanting to get Louis' hopes up, just in case.

He doesn't think that there's a cause for Louis to worry. He's never seen Laura so hung up on a guy before. Not even Rob made her  _this_  nervous. It's not the big things that get noticed by Jeremy, it's really the little things. And there have been more and more of them as the summer has gone by.

Like the way she wouldn't leave Louis, not even to get a few winks of sleep, the night he got hurt. Jeremy's not going to tell anyone, but Laura looked scared when she was sitting there, looking at Louis when he was just laying there in his bunk. She had insisted on patching him up herself, seeming like she almost didn't trust Jeremy to do it right.

He knows she didn't mean to come off that way, she was just worried. He thinks that she was overreacting a little. But it was almost cute.

"Okay. So does it mean anything that Mr. Johnson called me 'son' before we left?" Louis asks curiously.

This draws Jeremy's attention. Mr. Eugene is very protective of Laura. If he's calling some guy 'son', it must be a special guy.

"That prob'ly does," he answers after a minute. "He's awful... protective with Laura. Iff'n he's callin' you son," Jeremy says, pausing for a second, "you got th' blessin' 'r somethin'. He must like ya. Thinks yer good for 'er."

"Really?" Louis asks, his eyes wide. "I thought maybe it was something like that, but I wasn't sure. He told me that she'd taken a shine to me, whatever that means."

"She has," Jeremy tells him. "She says she don't pick favorites, but yer 'er favorite."

"Is that what that means? That she favors me or something?"

Jeremy nods. "Yeah, somethin' like that."

"He asked me if I would protect her."

"So 'e trusts ya with 'er. Knows you'll keep 'er safe."

"He gave me a knife."

"What?" Jeremy asks. "Which one?"

Louis pulls the large blade out, handing it over to Jeremy.

"This 's... I ain't seen thiss'n 'fore," Jeremy mutters, eyebrows furrowed. "Didn't know 'e had one like this."

"He's got more than one?" Louis asks.

"Course. Ev'ryone out here's got at least two knives on 'em all th' time. Laura's always got three 'r so," Jeremy explains, turning the knife over in his hands, looking at the design carved into the handle.

"Where does she even put them?" Louis asks.

"In 'er boots, pockets. I wouldn't be surprised ta find out she keeps one between 'er boobs," Jeremy says nonchalantly, handing the knife back to Louis. "She's got fancy pockets in 'er boots ta hold knives an' stuff."

"So she could potentially keep herself safe, right?" Louis asks.

Jeremy nods. "She could. But there's always that off chance that she'll have 'er back turned an' won't see somethin' comin' up behind 'er. That's when she needs help. But she' won't ever ask fer it 'erself. She's too proud fer that." He smiles down at the sleeping girl. "That's when she needs somebody there ta watch 'er back."

Louis nods again. He seems to be doing that a lot today. Laura stirs, then rolls over, her hair falling into her face as she sleeps.

There's another braid in her hair, Louis notices, smaller than the big braid that she's put her hair into. It's a cute little braid, coming from the hair at the back of her head, just behind her ear, and weaving itself into the bigger braid like it's always been there.

"Is there a reason why she's always got her hair up?"

Jeremy snorts. "Besides th' obvious one? Some sorta Cherokee thing 'bout braids and women. It's got somethin' ta do with marriage, like, th' better th' braid is, th' better of a wife th' woman's gonna be."

"So what's that braid mean?" Louis asks, nodding toward Laura.

"That one? Means she's sleepin'," Jeremy laughs. "Seriously though, th' way she braids 'er hair all th' time, they're usually pretty neat, right?" Louis nods. There's always a few hairs that fall out, but that's because they aren't long enough to be twisted into the plait. Besides, he's always liked them. "She's practically wife material then, by Cherokee standards."

"What about the little braid? Does that mean anything?"

"What little braid?" Jeremy asks, looking down at Laura. "Oh. That's new. She musta done that today 'r somethin'. I ain't seen it 'fore." He shrugs. "You'll haveta ask 'er."

Louis nods, thinking that maybe he'll ask her tomorrow.

"Prob'ly oughta get some sleep," Jeremy says. "Got a long ride tamarra."

"Are we almost back?" Louis asks, stretching his arms.

"Yessir. Oughta get back 'round suppertime tammara, iff'n ev'rythin' goes good."


	51. Chapter 51

It's the last leg of the drive, I can see the gate to the big pen held open by Jeremy. I can almost feel the soft mattress beneath me. I can't wait to finally take a real shower.

Soon the cattle are moving into the pen, mooing and shoving against each other. After a little while they're all in, and the gate is securely locked.

"How many?" I ask Kyle, who has been sitting on the fence, counting the cattle as they came in.

" 'Round two thousand head if I counted right," he says, jumping down onto the ground.

I smile. This is the biggest herd we've ever brought back. Hopefully we can get some good prices for them.

"That's great!" I say, smiling down at him from my seat atop Rebel. He smiles back, nodding.

"Well, if yer done with me, I think 'm gonna head on home. Need a shower," he says, laughing.

I laugh with him. "I know how ya feel. Go on home. Thank fer th' help."

"Anytime," he says, waving and walking over to his truck, jumping in, and driving home.

"Laura!" Jeremy calls. I turn Rebel around.

"What?" I ask as he pulls up beside me on his horse, Colonel.

"This 's th' biggest herd we've ever gotten!" he says excitedly.

"I know! It's amazin'!" I reply happily.

Suddenly there's a loud crack, then the sound of running hooves. My head whips around to see where the sound is coming from.

A lone steer has broken out of the pen and is running around. I don't worry about it much at first, it's just staying close to the fence, where it can see the other cattle.

But then it stops, turns, and begins running a different way. I gasp. Right in the steer's path, carrying his saddle, is Louis.

Shit.

Without another thought, I spur Rebel toward him, taking off at a full gallop. My eyes dart between him and the steer, gauging how much time I have.

The steer is almost to him when I jump out of my saddle, tackling him and pushing him out of the way, feeling a sharp pain in my side when we hit the ground.

Louis' Point of View

Ow. Was that really necessary? I was just walking along, minding my own business, and somebody just knocks me over.

Whoever it is is now on top of me, squashing me into the ground.

"Oh, shit," they say, and I immediately know that it's Laura. She rolls off of me and lays on the ground next to me.

"Y'a'right?" she asks, turning her head to look at me.

I nod. "Yeah, I'm fine," I say, slowly sitting up and looking around.

"Good," she says. "That makes one o' us."

"What do you-" my sentence is cut short when I look over at her.

She's completely pale, clutching her right side, where there's a rapidly growing red stain on her tank top.

There's hoofbeats, and milliseconds later, Jeremy jumps off of his horse and kneels next to Laura.

"Oh God, Laura," he says when he looks at the blood covering her hand. "Not again."

"What happened?" I ask.

"Steer... got loose... runnin'... you was... in... th' way," Laura says through gritted teeth.

It hits me. She just saved my life. Without thinking of what could happen to her.

"We gotta clean this off," Jeremy says.

"Then get... get to it," Laura says.

Jeremy nods, then gets up and runs over to his horse, digging through his saddlebags.

"What's he doing?" I ask.

"Gettin'... whiskey... alcohol... cleans stuff..." she clarifies for me.

"What can I do? Can I help?" I'm trying to stay calm, but this is the girl I love, even though I can't say it out loud, it's kinda tough to stay calm when she's laying on the ground, bleeding.

"You can... hold my hand..." she says, looking up at me with those big brown eyes. "Please?"

I nod, then take her free hand in mine, squeezing it gently.

Jeremy comes back with a small silver flask and one of his shirts. He kneels back down and begins ripping the shirt into long strips.

"Where're... th' others?" Laura asks.

I look around for a moment, finding the other lads.

"Harry and Liam are putting the steer back in the pen... and Niall and Zayn are coming over here," I answer.

Soon the two have reached us, and look worriedly at Laura.

"How can we help?" Niall asks, turning to Jeremy.

"Hold 'er feet down. This 's gonna sting and she ain't gonna like it," Jeremy replies, not looking away from his task. They nod and kneel down by Laura's feet, Zayn on the left and Niall on the right.

"Louis, can ya hold 'er shoulders down? She's gotta stay 's still 's possible."

I nod, then move so that I can still hold her hand and hang onto her shoulders with my free hand.

"Ya ready Laura?" Jeremy asks. She nods, then moves her hand away from her side.

"Alright, don't freak out."

"Jus' ... jus' do what ya gotta do," Laura says.

Jeremy nods, the grabs the hem of her shirt, pulling it up her torso, so he can get to the wound better.

I dare a look at the bloody gash, and have to turn away, it's that bad. I can see the bones of her ribs, it's that deep.

"Ya'll ready?" Jeremy asks, looking at Zayn, Niall, and I. We nod, and Jeremy spins the lid off the flask, tipping the bottom up and pouring some of it's contents right onto the open wound.

Laura tenses right up, hissing in pain. I swear she's cutting off circulation in my hand, she's squeezing it so tight. I can hear Niall and Zayn cussing as they try to keep her feet from moving.

Jeremy takes one of the strips he's made from his shirt and presses it against the wound, soaking up quite a bit of blood.

Once that cloth is soaked through, he removes it and pours more whiskey onto the wound, causing Laura to tense up again, a steady stream of curses coming from her mouth.

I've never seen her like this before, so... in pain. She's not crying, but the look on her face is one of complete and utter agony. It's killing me to see her like this and know I can't really do anything except hold her hand.

Jeremy repeats the process a couple more times, then uses the remaining strips of cloth to make a bandage.

" 'M gonna have ta... go to th' hospital... ain't I?" Laura asks, her voice hoarse and raspy.

Jeremy just nods, looking at her sadly.

"Can't do no more on my own," he says.

Just then Liam and Harry come running over.

"What happened?"

"Gonna take 'er to th' hospital," Jeremy says, throwing Liam his keys. "Go get my truck." Liam nods, then takes off running.

"What do you want us to do, love?" Harry asks.

"Stay here... Feed th' horses... put Rebel in 'is stall... Hold down th' fort," Laura replies, speaking in short sentences.

"Me too?" I ask, still hanging on to her hand. I'm not going to let go until I have to.

She shakes her head. "Uh - uh... Yer comin' with me."

Liam pulls up in Jeremy's truck and hops out, leaving it running.

"Can you get 'er in th' truck?" Jeremy asks me.

I nod. "I've got her," I tell him, and then turn back to Laura. "Alright, you gotta move now."

She nods, and I let go of her hand and slide one arm behind her back, the other going under her knees, then I gently lift her up and follow Jeremy to his truck.

I feel Laura grab a fistful of my shirt, making a small noise.

"Lou?" she asks.

"What?"

"Could - could ya walk jus' a 'lil slower?" she asks. "Please?"

I nod, and slow my pace a little, understanding that in my hurry I had been jostling her around, which probably didn't feel too good. She relaxes in my arms, letting her head fall onto my shoulder.

I walk up to the door, then gently place her inside, laying her across the backseat. Then I climb in, sitting so she can lay her head in my lap.

As soon as I close the door, Jeremy speeds off,slinging dirt and grass from under his tires, on the phone with Eugene, probably telling him what happened. After Jeremy hangs up it's quiet for awhile, until Laura speaks up.

"Jerbear?"

"What Lulu?" he asks, the pet name making Laura almost smile.

"Can I sleep? 'M tired."

He shakes his head. "Not this time. Ya gotta stay awake."

"Whyyy?" she whines, dragging out the word.

"Because ya lost a lotta blood. You know that ain't good. An' ya might'a hit yer head on somethin', can't sleep till we rule out a concussion."

"What?" I ask, completely freaking out. Concussion? Where did that come from?

"Hey, don't worry. Prolly ain't one 'o them. I'll be fine," Laura says, reaching a hand up to run her fingers through my hair.

"Just keep 'er talkin'," Jeremy says. "Don't let 'er sleep."

I nod. "Laura, tell me a story."

She gives me a confused, yet amused look.

"Okayyyy.. what about?"

"It doesn't matter."

"Okay..." she trails off, looking out the window. "Holy shit Jeremy! How fast 're ya goin'? You better hope there ain't no cops around!"

As if they heard her, a siren begins to blare, making Jeremy groan and slow down, pulling over on the side of the road.

"Keep 'er talkin'. I got 'em," he says, climbing out.

"Alright, Laura. Tell me that story," I tell her.

"A'righty... So I 'as in preschool, an' we had this thing called th' timeout bucket. It 'as one o' them big buckets, and iff'n you was bad, ya had ta sit in th' bucket fer ten minutes. An' me, bein' me, I ended up in there more times'n I can count. One time th' teacher said I had ta stay in th' bucket fer half an hour, which I thought was bullshit, so I grabbed th' handles an' scooted th' bucket out th' door an down th' hallway."

"What?" I question, a smile on my face. She nods.

"Got all th' way to th' parkin' lot 'fore they caught me. They was pretty pissed, an' I jus' said 'I never left th' bucket.' So they called Daddy, an' told 'im what happened, an' he jus' said, 'well, she didn't leave th' bucket.' An' I didn't get in trouble 'r nothin'."

"Really? What did you even do?"

"I said I didn't wanna sit by some girl, 'cause I wanted ta sit by my friend. Kind of argued with th' teacher 'bout it."

The driver's door slams shut.

"So what'd they tell ya?" Laura asks Jeremy.

"They're gonna give us an escort ta th' hospital, so we don't have ta stop till we get there," he replies, pulling back onto the road behind the police cruiser and mashing the gas.

"Well, that's nice of 'em," Laura says, picking up one of my hands and playing with my fingers.

There's silence for awhile, just comfortable silence. Well, as comfortable as it can get, given the situation.

"Are we there yet?" Laura asks.

"Almost," Jeremy replies. "Couple more miles."

"Okay," she yawns. "Louis, can I sleep now?" She looks up at me with those big brown eyes, and I really want to say yes. She's giving me the puppy dog face, pout and all. But I remember Jeremy's words, and I have to tell her no.

"Not yet, sorry babe. You gotta stay awake for now."  _Babe_? Where did that come from?

"But Lou... 'M tired..." she whines, not noticing my slip up. I've never seen her whine so much in one day. I'm glad she isn't like this all the time. It's a little irritating. But I would gladly deal with it if I could be with her all the time, never having to leave...

"Hey, why're ya lookin at me like that?" she asks, snapping me out of my thoughts. I blink a few times. 

"Ummm..." I stutter, my face heating up. She knows, doesn't she? She knows I've been keeping something from her, she always finds stuff out. I shoulda known I wouldn't be able to keep this from her. I'm gonna have to tell her, aren't I? This isn't the right place, or the right time...

"I got somethin' on my face, don't I?" Her hand that isn't holding onto mine goes up to her face, trying to find what isn't there.

"No, you're... you're fine," I assure her, looking out the window. I want to tell her, I just can't find the right moment to do it in. The problem is, I probably don't have much time left, maybe just a few more weeks.

"Hey, we're here," Jeremy says, parking the truck and shutting the engine off.

I open the door and carefully pick Laura up, carrying her inside.

I sit down on one of the chairs in the waiting area, Laura sitting on my lap, while Jeremy goes to talk to the receptionist.

After a few seconds, Laura wraps her arms around my neck, and nuzzles her head into my shoulder. I'm a bit surprised, but I hug her back, careful not to mess up Jeremy's makeshift bandage.

"Laura, what-"

"Don't say nothin'," she mumbles. "Jus'... don't worry 'bout it."

I nod, then squeeze her a bit tighter. We sit like that for a bit, just holding each other.

"Am I interruptin' somethin'?" I look up to see Jeremy looking at us with a confused expression.

"No, yer fine," Laura says, her face still hidden in my shoulder.

"Well, th' doc's ready."

I nod, then stand, cradling Laura in my arms, and follow Jeremy down the hall and into one of the rooms. I carefully lay Laura down on the white sheets, and then stand by Jeremy on one side of it.

The doctor walks in, a middle aged man with a gray streak in his brown hair. He pushes his glasses further up his nose as he walks through the door, clipboard in hand.

"Hey there Laura. What'd ya do this time?" he asks, setting the clipboard down on the counter and sitting in the chair on the other side of the bed.

"Steer got out, got in th' way," she replies smoothly. Whoa, wait.  _She_  got in the way?

"Same as last time, I see." He looks at Jeremy and I. "If you gentlemen would wait outside, I'll take a look and see what has to be done."

We nod, and I begin to follow Jeremy out the door, even though I'd rather stay with Laura.

"Hey, hey, hey. Hang on," I hear Laura say. I turn around to see her trying to sit up, an almost scared look on her face.

"Can - can Louis stay? Please?" Her eyes dart between me and the door, as if she thinks I'll leave. I won't, not unless she wants me to.

"I suppose he can," the doctor says.

"I'll be out in th' waitin' room. Paperwork," Jeremy says before he disappears out the door, and as he walks past me I hear him say, "good luck."

I walk back over to Laura's good side and pull a chair over so that I can sit and hold her hand.

A few minutes later, my hand is almost purple, and I can't really feel my fingers. This girl's got a good grip. The doctor's poked around Laura's wound and, judging by how hard she was crushing my hand, it must have hurt.

"Well, missy, there's a piece of bone in there that isn't yours. Must of broke the steer's horn when it hit you."

"Can ya take it out now, or do I haveta wait?" Laura asks.

"We can do it now, if that's what you want. There's less risk of infection that way, and we can make sure that it gets stitched up the right way."

Laura nods, and the doctor picks up his clipboard again, writing a few notes on it.

"Alright. I'll send Jamie in to start the sedative, then once you're asleep, we'll start the procedure." And with that, he walks out the door, closing it behind himself.

"Goodie," Laura mutters. " 'Nother one."

"What do you mean?" I ask, bending and unbending my fingers, making sure they still work.

"This ain't th' first time. Last time it was my leg." I feel my eyes go wide. So that's where her crazy scar came from. Her 'occupational hazard.'

"That one hurt. Couldn't walk fer a couple days. Thiss'n though... ow."

She's gone through this before? And she was willing to do it again, for me?

"Hello Laura." Erica's mum walks through the door, a smile on her face.

"Hey Jamie," Laura replies. "How's Ben doin'?"

"Tore his ACL, poor boy. Doc says he'll be out for a few games, at least." Jamie looks at me, then she opens her mouth to say something, but closes it, smiling at me instead, and I return the smile.

"So I'm going to start the IV, and when you fall asleep, they'll move you into the OR, just like last time."

"A'right," Laura says before turning away and closing her eyes.

"What's wrong?" I ask, bending down so that my face is level with hers.

"Don'tlikeIVs," she says quickly. "They hurt."

"You're alright, 'm right here," I assure her, putting a strand of hair behind her ear. She winces, then -

"Alright, all done."

Laura and I both look over at the same time and, sure enough, Jamie's done.

"I'll leave you two alone for awhile. Tell me when she falls asleep."

I nod, letting her know that I understand, and she walks out the door, closing it behind herself.

"Soo.. waddya wanna do?" I ask.

She halfway laughs. "I wanna go home."

"Oh..." I say. I look down at the floor, trying to hide my face from Laura.

"Hey, come back," she says, pulling on my hair. I sigh.

"This 's my fault."

"Whaddya mean?"

"This," I gesture around the room, "if I'd been paying attention, you wouldn't be in here right now." I look back down at my feet, feeling awful as the guilt sets in.

I hear her take a deep breath.

"Louis William Tomlinson. Look at me."

I look up slowly, like a child about to be scolded by his mother.

"Don't blame yerself. This ain't yer fault," she says firmly. "If anythin' it's my fault."

I open my mouth to protest, but she cuts me off.

"Don't argue with me, it 'as my choice ta take th' hit. You woulda done th' same fer me. That's what ya do when... when ya care 'bout somebody. So don't worry 'bout it."

My heart skips a couple beats when she stumbles over her words. Was she going to say something different? That she loves me like I love her? I wanna tell her, but I'm scared she won't feel the same, but moments like this make me hopeful.

"Now that we got that straight, can we not be all mushy fer awhile? Please?" I nod, relieved that she doesn't expect me to say anything about what she said.

"That damn thing shouldn'ta had horns anyway. Musta missed it last year," she mutters, looking around the room. I stay silent, not knowing what to say.

"Hey... don't be all sad. I don't like it when yer sad..." she says, pulling on my hair again to get me to look at her. I smile a little.

"So what is there left to do when we get back?" I ask.

"Lou?" she asks, yawning for about the fiftieth time. I've noticed her eyes closing further and further as we've been talking. She must be getting close to falling asleep.

"What, babe?"

"I gotta -" Yawn "-tell ya-" another yawn "-somethin'..." yet another yawn "somethin' important..."

Her head rolls over to the side facing me, with her eyes closed.

"What would that be?" I ask, my curiosity building.

"Smthn'..." she trails off. No! She can't fall asleep right now, she hasn't told me yet.

But it's too late, she's out.

I sigh, then let go of her hand, leaning over to kiss her forehead and whisper the words I can't say to her when she's awake, then reluctantly make my way out the door to find Jamie.

After I tell Jamie that Laura's out, I go back out to the waiting area and sit down in a chair next to Jeremy.

"How is she?" he asks as he fills out the medical form.

"She's going into surgery."

" 'Nother broke steer horn?" I nod. "Figures. That happened last time too, 'cept-"

"It was her leg. She told me." I pull out my phone to check the time. Fifteen minutes since I've seen Laura. Feels like hours.

"How long do these take?" I ask Jeremy, already impatient.

"Depends. Last one was a few hours. This'n might take longer, 'cause there's more stuff where they're workin'." He turns to look at me.

"Ya really care 'bout 'er, don't ya?"

I nod again. "I love her." Why can I tell him, but I can't tell her?

He smiles, and looks back at the form. "Have ya told  _her_  that?"

I sigh. "Not yet. 'M waiting for the right moment, you know?"

He nods. "I get where yer comin' from."

There's a short moment of silence, then he stands.

" 'M gonna go give this ta the lady at the desk, then 'm goin' ta McDonald's. You want anythin'?"

I shake my head. "No thanks. Not hungry." I'm too worried about Laura to eat.

He nods, then walks away.

It feels like days until he gets back, though it's probably only an hour, holding two paper bags in his hands. He stops in front of me, holding one of the bags out for me to take.

"I knew ya'd get hungry, so I got ya somethin'," he says, sitting down as I take the bag from his hand. As I open it, the smell drifts up, and my stomach growls. Maybe I was hungry.

"Thanks," I say before we both dig into our burgers.

"Have they said anythin'?" he asks, his mouth full.

I shake my head. "I haven't heard a word since she went in."

"That's good," he muses. I give him a confused look. "If somethin' goes wrong, they usually tell whoever's waitin' right away. They ain't said nothin' yet, so everythin' must be goin' good."

I nod, feeling like a weight's been lifted off my chest. I hadn't thought about that. So she's alright. That's good.

"So how're you doin'?" Jeremy asks. "Yer bein' awful quiet."

" 'M alright, I guess," I say hestitantly. "Just worried."

"Ya don't have ta be. She'll pull through. Always does. Always been a fighter."

"I know, it's just... she said something..." I trail off, unsure if I should tell him.

"Like what?" he asks curiously.

"She said she had to tell me something, and it was important."

"Then what? Did she tell ya?"

I shake my head. "She fell asleep. And now I can't stop thinking about what it might be."

I hear him laugh.

"That sucks. Can't help ya though. I don't remember her sayin' nothin' bout havin' ta tell ya somethin'."

"Thanks," I reply, laughing dryly.

"Maybe you oughta get some sleep. I'll wake ya up iff'n they say anythin'," Jeremy says softly.

I sigh again. It's probably going to be awhile before they come tell us anything. I nod, then stumble over to one of the couches across from the doors, finding a spot where I could see if anyone was coming. I lay down, and fall asleep almost instantly.

I feel someone shaking my shoulder a few hours later, and slowly open my eyes.

"She's outta surgery, but she's still out. We can go see 'er though," Jeremy says quietly with a smile on his face.

I nod, then get up off the couch, stretching my sore muscles. I hope Laura can go home soon. It's been an entire week since I've slept in a real bed.

A nurse leads us down the silent hallway, stopping in front of a door with the number thirteen on it. A small smile appears on my face as I remember that thirteen is her favorite number.

Jeremy walks in first, and I follow, looking at the girl laying there on the white sheets.

It's Laura alright, but she doesn't seem the same. Her face holds no expression at all, and she's not moving. The Laura I know is always moving, whether it's tapping her foot or wiggling her toes or drumming her fingers on her knee.

Those drugs must be strong.

Jeremy takes a seat on one of the chairs by the wall, and I sit in the other one.

"Now we jus' wait," Jeremy says.

"Did they say how long it would be?" I ask.

"Few hours, maybe. Last time it was jus' half an hour 'fore she woke 'erself up." I nod. "You should probably tell th' others what's goin' on. I told Liam when she went in, but that's th' last they know. I'll call Mr. Eugene."

I nod again, then stand and walk out of the room to call the lads. I stay where I can see Laura through the door's window, just in case she wakes up while I'm out here. I pull out my phone and dial Harry's number.

"Hullo?" he answers. He sounds tired, like he just woke up.

"Hey Haz, it's me." I hear shuffling. "I've got news about Laura."

"Hang on. Let me get the others." I hear him yelling at someone, probably Zayn, to get up, it's important.

I pull by phone back to check the time. Two thirty in the morning. Oops. They must have been asleep.

"Louis? Are you still there?" Harry's voice comes through the speaker.

"Yep. Is everyone there?"

"Yeah. You're on speaker actually. What's going on with Laura? She's alright, isn't she?"

I nod, then remember that they can't see me.

"Yeah, she's alright. Surgery went good, and now we're just waiting for her to wake up."

"That's great! Does she look alright?" Liam asks.

"Yeah, it's just really weird seeing her laying there, not moving. She's usually a ball of energy."

"When's she supposed to wake up?"

"The doctors say it could be a few hours. We're probably gonna stay till she can go home."

"Okay, call us when she wakes up then."

"I will, don't worry," I say with a smile.

"K. Bye Lou!" they all shout into the phone before Harry hangs up. I slide my phone back into my pocket and trudge back into Laura's room. When I close the door, I notice Jeremy asleep in his chair, headphones in his ears, music pouring out of them. I smile. Neither one of them can live without music, it seems.

I pull my chair over next to Laura's bed, and sit down. I gently pick up her hand and lace my fingers in between hers. I look around the room, my eyes falling on the small table next to her bed, where her phone sits.

I pick up the blue iPhone, press the home button, and the screen lights up. The picture on her lock screen is all five of us, sitting on our horses, the first day of the drive.

That day seems like so long ago.

I slide the thingy on the screen and, to my surprise, her phone is unlocked. I open her music library, and click on a random song.

Making sure the volume is on the lowest possible setting, I set the phone back on the table, letting the music softly fill the room.

_Wild thing, you make my heart sing._

_You make everything groovy._

_Wild thing._

" _Wild thing, I think I love you_ ," I sing the words from memory. Laura loves this song.

" _But I wanna know for sure._

_So come on and hold me tight._

_I love you._ "

She can't hear me, but I still look up at her, nervous.

" _Wild thing, you make my heart sing,_

_you make everything groovy._

_Wild thing._ "

I rub my thumb across her knuckles. Her hands are scratched and scarred, calloused from all the work she does, but still so soft. I wonder what she's dreaming about. Do people dream when they're under this... stuff?

" _Wild thing, I think you move me_

_But I wanna know for sure._

_So come on and hold me tight._

_You move me_."

I feel my eyelids getting heavier and heavier, each blink lasting longer than the last. I rest my head down on the soft mattress, closing my eyes for a few seconds. I don't wanna fall asleep, cause I wanna see her when she wakes up, but my brain isn't giving me a choice. Before I know it, I'm out.

Laura's Point of View

I hear beeping, and when I open my eyes, I'm almost blinded by the lights on the ceiling. What the-? Where am I?

Once my eyes have adjusted enough that I can unsquint them, I look around. Shit. Hospital. I knew this bedsheet was too white to be mine.

I go to put a hand on my face, but stop when I realize there's something attached to it. Another hand, followed by an arm, then a sleeping Louis. I smile. He must have stayed here all night.

I look around for a clock, and find one on the wall across from me, above the door. It's only six... I s'pose I can go back to sleep for awhile.

I close my eyes again, and am about to drift off when Louis' hand squeezes mine.

I hear him sigh. "Please wake up, Laura."

I open one eye, and see him sadly staring at me. Once he sees me move, his face lights up, and his blue eyes sparkle again.

"Laura!" he softly exclaims, careful not to wake up Jeremy. I smile and squeeze his hand, opening both eyes.

"Hey," I say softly, my voice coming out as a whisper. "Why's it so bright in here?"

He laughs quietly. "Cause I fell asleep with the lights on."

"Can ya turn 'em off please?" He nods, then gets up, letting go of my hand to turn off the lights.

"Thanks," I say once the room is dark and he's sitting back down.

"Anything for you, love," he whispers, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. I smile at the small gesture.

"So 's only six fifteen, 's too early ta be awake," I say quietly.

"Alright, you can go back to sleep if you want. 'S ok."

I shake my head. "Uh-uh. You sleep too. You been up all night."

"Not all night, just most of it."

"Didya eat anythin'?" I ask, hoping he'll say yes.

He nods. "Jeremy went to McDonalds and got us burgers."

I nod, then think of something. "Did ya fall asleep in that chair? Looks not so comfy."

He shrugs. "It's alright."

"You wanna come up here?"

"What, in there with you?" I nod. "You sure?"

I nod again. " 'S kinda cold in here." And I want someone to cuddle with. Like you. I want to cuddle with you. I love you.

"What if a nurse or somebody comes in?"

"It don't matter. People do it all the time. C'mon, it'll be comfier'n that chair." Please...

He smiles. "Alright. Move over a little."

I scoot over, making enough room for him to crawl in next to me under the blankets. He puts one arm around my shoulders, pulling me into him.

"This feels so nice," he sighs.

"I know, right? Much better than a sleeping bag."

"Mmhmm..."

I lay my head on his shoulder and close my eyes.

"Laura?"

"Hmm?"

"You said you had something important to tell me before you fell asleep."

"Really?" What the heck is he talking about?

"Yeah... Do you remember what it was?"

I shake my head. "Nope." I honestly don't. I can't think of anything important that I would have to tell him... unless...  _no_. I didn't almost tell him I love him while I was going under, did I?

"Oh... well, I was just wondering." He sounds disappointed, like he thought I'd say something... maybe I should say something...

"Lou?" Silence. He's not answering. I feel his head fall on top of mine, and know that he's asleep. Phew. Dodged that one.

But seriously, I need to tell him soon. I probably don't have much time left before he'll have to leave.

But I'm not gonna worry about that now. I'm just gonna enjoy this. Being with Louis is literally the best part of my night - er, morning.

Before long, I'm asleep again.


	52. Chapter 52

Laura's Point of View

A sharp prodding in my arm is what wakes me up the next morning. Well, a few hours after I fell asleep again. 

I pry my eyes open to see a nurse standing there, quietly cursing as she tries to pull the IV needle from my arm. 

"D'ya need me ta move?" I ask, my voice quiet.

She shakes her head. "No, I think I got it. Thank you though." She tries again, this time successfully removing the needle. "I didn't want to wake you up. You and your boyfriend are cute all cuddled up together."

I open my mouth to tell her that we aren't really together, but she walks out the door, telling me that when I'm ready, I can check out at the front desk.

I feel Louis move, turning his face into my hair and breathing deeply. 

"You awake?" he asks. 

"Mmmhmm."

"Did they say you could go home yet?" 

"Yeah. Said I could leave once I was ready."

"Are you ready?"

I shrug. "Maybe. 'M pretty comfy right here," I say, leaning my head on his shoulder.

"How's it doin'?"

"It's alright," he says. "D'you think we should wake Jeremy up?"

"Prob'ly."

A few minutes later, all three of us are walking out the front door of the hospital, all on our phones. I'm talking to Daddy, Jeremy us explaining where he is to his parents, and Louis is telling the guys that we're coming back. 

When we get to Jeremy's truck, Louis picks me up, setting me down on the bench seat in the front, then climbs in after me. Jeremy doesn't say anything, but I know he saw it, judging by the grin on his face. 

I'm almost frozen, a bit stunned as I sit in my seat. I guess I sit still for too long, because Louis reaches over me, grabbing my seat belt and pulling it over me, snapping the buckle into place. 

"Just got you out of the hospital," he says with a grin. "Can't have you going right back."

"Thanks," I say softly, still a little stunned.

Jeremy clears his throat, making me jump. 

He doesn't say anything, just starts the truck and pulls out of the parking lot. 

It's quiet for a while, until I can't take it anymore, and turn on the radio.

Louis' point of view

I was pushing it a little when I helped her into the truck, I know that. But seeing how she reacted was worth the risk. I could tell she wasn't expecting it, and it sort of shocked her. If she asks, I'll probably say that it could have pulled the stitches in her side, and I didn't want her to get hurt. Which is true, but it's not the only reason.

She's still sort of quiet, but she's dancing in her seat to the song on the radio. If it weren't for the bandage that I know is hidden under her shirt, I would think that its just another normal day. 

Jeremy drives us right to the door of the bunkhouse, and after Laura and I climb out, he says goodbye, driving to his own home.

"Laura Lynn!" I hear a loud voice shout. Then Laura is pulled away from me, and wrapped in a hug. 

" 'm fine Daddy," she says. "Ain't nothin' too bad."

Her father just shakes his head, turning his face into her hair. 

"Don't you scare me like that again, you hear me?"

"Yessir." 

He looks at me, and I'm struck with a pang of guilt. I was supposed to keep her safe. Keep her from getting hurt. And I failed.

But he doesn't seem mad. Instead, he gives me a small smile. 

"Well, iff'n yer a'right," he says, turning back to Laura. 

"I am," she says with a smile.

"Then I s'pose I'll let you get back to it," he says jokingly. "Jus' don't push yerself too much."

"Yessir." 

"A'right. I'll see ya at supper then," he says. Then he turns, walking back into the main house.

She waits until he's inside, then turns back to me. I see the color run out of her face, and move quickly, catching her as her legs give out. 

"Easy, love. Are you alright?"

She nods. "Yeah. Jus' need a second. Gimme a second." She moves her legs back underneath herself, leaning on me. 

"Take your time, it's alright," I say quietly. 

"Laura!" I hear someone shout. Then we're surrounded by horses, the other lads hopping off to hug Laura. Yankee runs around our small circle, barking excitedly. 

When we finally make our way inside, Laura nearly collapses onto the couch, her hand pressing against her side. 

"Do you need anything?" I ask her. She shakes her head. 

"No, jus' need ta sleep it off, I s'pose."

"Are you alright to go upstairs by yourself?"

She gives me look. "Course not. But 'm gonna try it anyway." She pulls herself to her feet, then takes a deep breath. "This ain't a good idea."

"Do you want me to carry you?" I ask. 

"That might be helpful," she says with a small smile. 

"Okay then. Is there anything else you think you'll need from down here?"

She shakes her head. "Prob'ly not."

I slide one arm under her knees, and pick her up, waiting until she's got an arm around my neck before I start walking up the stairs. 

It's a good thing that the rest of the lads are back out in the field moving some of the cattle, because I'm pretty sure they'd have something to say about me carrying Laura into her room. And it most likely wouldn't be G-rated. 

I set her on top of her mattress, careful not to touch her side. 

"Thanks," she says, leaning back against the pillows. 

"You're welcome. D'you want me to stay?" 

She nods. "Yeah. That'd be nice."

"Okay." I sit down on the edge of the bed. "Whaddya wanna do?" 

" _I_ wanna sleep," she says. "I dunno what you wanna do."

Oh, you know, the usual. Kiss you, maybe cuddle a little bit, try to grab your ass, smell your hair. Nothing weird at all.

"How about I just talk until you fall asleep?" I suggest.

"Sounds good."

It does sound good. There's only one problem. 

"What do you want me to talk about?"

She shrugs. "I dunno. Tell me 'bout that girl."

"What girl?"

"Th' girl ya keep talkin' 'bout in yer sleep."

"Not this again," I groan, pretending to be annoyed. "Haven't I already said everything in my sleep?"

Laura shakes her head. "Nope. Ya jus' say she's perdy."

"Well, what else do you want me to say?"

"What's she look like? How's she talk? Waddya like 'bout 'er?"

"I like the way she talks," I admit. "It's nice to listen to. She's kind of got her own rhythm when she talks." I feel a small smile grow on my face. "I like it."

When I look at Laura, I expect her to be giving me a weird look, but instead I see a soft smile on her face.

"That's actually pretty cute," she says.

I shrug. "I never knew I had a thing for southern drawls."

She giggles, her nose scrunching up adorably. "What else?"

I hum, thinking for a moment. What can I tell her that won't give away who it is? I feel weird because she's sitting - well, laying - right there and I'm saying all this stuff about her.

"I like her hair," I say after a moment. "The way it curls up around her ears when it's down." 

"What color is it?" she asks, turning her face toward me.

"It's pretty dark," I tell her, moving a strand (of the very hair that I'm talking about) out of her face. "It's a nice color though. I like it."

Laura smiles again. Then her eyes move to my shoulder. 

"Yer bleedin'," she tells me, starting to sit up.

I look down and see that, indeed, there's blood soaking through my shirt right where the bandage is on my shoulder. 

"There's a white box under th' sink in th' bathroom," Laura starts. I nod, already moving toward the swinging doors. "Grab a towel too!" she calls.

When I come back with the box and towel, Laura's sitting up on the edge of her bed, her feet on the floor. She pats the mattress next to her, and I sit down, setting the box and towel in between us. 

"You prob'ly oughta take yer shirt off," she says, looking anywhere except my face. I nod, pulling the clothing over my head and setting it on the floor. "I'll wash it later iff'n ya want," she says as she gets to work, opening the box and pulling out some gauze and a bottle of hydrogen peroxide. 

"Not that stuff," I groan. "It -"

"Hurts, I know, sugar," Laura says, her voice becoming even more soothing than it usually is. "You can hold my hand iff'n that'll make it better."

She starts pulling the bandage off, unwinding it from around my arm and shoulder. 

I start getting sort of nervous when she opens the bottle, tipping it upside down with the towel placed over the top. 

Once she sets it back down, she looks at me. 

"You wanna hold my hand?" she asks seriously. I nod, thankful she's not making fun of me. She slides her hand into mine, and I gently squeeze her palm. 

"Okay, here we go," she says as a warning. Then she presses the towel against my shoulder, and I hiss through my teeth at the sting as she holds it there. 

"Shhh... yer a'right," she coos, pulling the towel back to look at the wound, She furrows her eyebrows. "One more oughta do it," she says, re-folding the towel in her lap. 

She tugs her hand out of mine for just a second to put more hydrogen peroxide on the towel, then she's sliding her fingers back between mine, almost like she likes them there. 

This time she doesn't give me a warning before pressing the towel to my skin, and I feel literal tears pricking at the back of my eyelids at the sting.

"Shhh... I know, sugar. You'll be a'right," she soothes. 

She doesn't let go of my hand, setting the towel down and getting out some cream to rub over the cuts.

And that  _stings_ too. 

She hums while she rubs it in, her eyes flitting back and forth from my face to my shoulder. I'm pretty sure she can see that I'm about to cry, even though I'm fighting it back. But to her credit, she doesn't say anything. 

Even when she starts wrapping another bandage around my shoulder, she doesn't let go of my hand. I'm not going to say anything, because I don't mind, but I wasn't expecting her to want to hold my hand like this. 

My question of how she's going to cut the bandage with one hand is answered when she leans over, using her teeth to rip the cotton before tucking it under. 

"There. All better," she says with a smile. 

"It still hurts," I pout, making her giggle a little bit. 

"What d'ya want me ta do?" she asks sarcastically.

"Kiss it. Make it better," I say, keeping up the pout. I know it's pushing it, but damn, that stuff  _hurts_. I deserve something extra for surviving it. 

She raises an eyebrow, shaking her head before leaning forward and pressing her lips to my shoulder, lingering for just a second. 

"Better?" she asks as she looks up at me. 

I feel my face heat up, and I nod. 

"Yeah. Thank you."

She smiles. "No problem."

She sits up, looking at me, and I notice the little braid again.

"What is that?" I ask. 

"What's what?"

I laugh a little bit. I should have known I'd get an answer like that.

"The braid," I tell her, reaching forward with my good arm to pull it out from the rest of her hair.

"Oh," she says, looking at it. " 't's a braid?" she answers, in the tone that I've come to know means she's trying not to laugh.

"No shit," I laugh. 

She shrugs. "Means somethin'," she says vaguely. 

I tilt my head to one side. "Like what?"

She blinks, and when her eyes open again, there's that look. That look that I can't figure out. It's a good look on her. Her eyes are soft, bright, and warm as they look straight into mine.

"Somethin'," she says quietly. 

She blinks again, her eyes quickly moving down before coming back up to mine again. She opens her mouth like she's going to say something else, but

"There you are!" Niall shouts from the doorway. "We've been looking everywhere for you!" 

And just like that, the moment is over. 

The rest of the lads pile in, all wanting to hug Laura, though I don't know why they're so touchy all of a sudden. They just saw her an hour or so ago. It's not like she's dying, so you can get your hands off of her... She's probably getting tired of all this attention. 

"A'right, ya seen me, now get outta here," she tells them with a tired smile, motioning to the door. "Need some sleep iff'n I'm gonna be of any use tamarra."

They groan, but do as she says, trudging out of the room, leaving the two of us alone again. 

Laura sighs, laying back down on her pillows, her hair fanning out under her head. 

"You want me to put this away?" I ask, holding up the white box and towel. Laura nods, looking at her phone. 

I get up, putting the box away and hanging up the towel before walking back over to Laura.

"Can you wake me up at five thirty?" she asks. "Jus' in case my phone don't do it."

I nod. "Yeah, I can do that." I'd like to just stay with you, but I get that you want to be alone, I understand. 

She smiles sleepily. "Thanks, Lou."

I smile back, feeling my heart jump into my throat when she says my name. 

She rolls onto her side, facing away from me, and pulls a blanket up over herself.

Tell her...

"Laura?"

"Hmm?" 

"I um..." Come on... "Thank you." 

What? No Louis! I love you! That's what you were supposed to say!

"Fer what?" she asks, looking over her shoulder at me.

"For um... not letting me get hit," I say. 

"Oh," she says. "It weren't nothin', ya don't haveta thank me."

"I know, I just..." I trail off, not sure how to get to where I want to be. "It means a lot that... that you care."

Niall's Point of View

"I'm gonna miss you," Ann tells me over the phone. 

"Well, it's not like I'm leaving tomorrow. We still don't know when it'll be," I reply. 

We'd just come in from sorting cattle all day, and Liam had checked his phone and seen that he had a voicemail, telling us that we've gotten enough money to get all five of us home, and Paul said that he and a couple others will be flying out to come get us in a little bit after they finish up all the paperwork and such. 

Louis went and shut himself up in his room, while the rest of us sat at the kitchen table in the bunkhouse, trying to take it all in. 

"Yeah, but I'll still miss you," she says. I hear a sniffle. 

"No, don't cry," I say. "You'll make me cry."

"I can't help it," she says with a sad laugh. 

"You'll be alright," I tell her. "We can still call and skype and stuff."

Louis' Point of View

I can hear Niall laughing while he talks to Ann through the wall between our rooms, and all I can feel right now is jealousy. I want something like that. I want it with Laura. 

But I know that I probably can't have it. Because we're leaving. I don't know when, but we're leaving, because we apparently have enough money now to get ourselves back home. 

Home. The word doesn't quite feel the same anymore. I know it's way too soon for  _this_ to be home, but I've grown so used to it, so used to Laura and the wide open spaces and the cattle and  _Laura_ , that I see this as a kind of home. I almost don't want to leave. No, scratch that. I don't want to leave at all. 

Laura's Point of View

"What's got ev'ryone so sad?" I ask as I set supper on the table. 

They look at each other, as if they all don't want to say anything. 

"Well," Harry finally says, "we got a phone call earlier, and we've got enough to go home."

"Oh." No, no, this can't... "When're ya leavin'?"

"We aren't sure. No one told us when they're coming," Liam says. 

I nod as I sit down. I glance at Louis, who's been strangely quiet all day, even more so in the past few hours. He doesn't look up at me, he just sits there and stares at his plate, picking at the potatoes with his fork.

"Well, you'll get ta go home, that's good, ain't it?" I ask carefully.

"I'm not hungry," Louis mutters, standing up. " 'scuse me." 

I watch him go, feeling sad for him. He appears torn up about having to leave, though I'm not sure why. He's always talking about his home, and how he misses his family.

Maybe that was just something to distract himself.

Louis' Point of View

"I'm gonna miss you guys when ya go," she says, sitting next to me on the steps of the bunkhouse porch. 

"I almost don't want to go home," I admit sadly. "There's... there's so much left that we haven't done, and we're gonna miss it." 

I don't mention that it's going to tear me apart once I have to leave Laura, especially if I haven't told her how I feel. But I can't seem to find the right moment. There never seems to be a time when we're alone enough to tell her. This is as close as we've gotten to being alone since we got back from the hospital yesterday - just Laura, Harry and I sitting on the steps of the bunkhouse. 

"Yeah, and there's all our new friends too," Harry says.

Laura nods, a bit of a disappointed look on her face. 

"Yeah." 

I look at Harry, and nod toward the door, hoping he'll get the hint that I want to be alone with Laura. He nods, and gets up, saying, "think I'll turn in for the night. Got work to do tomorrow." Before he walks through the door he turns to me and mouths 'good luck.' 

I turn back to Laura, racking my brain for the right words. Why can I think of them when I'm supposed to be sleeping, but when I have to say them it's like someone flushed the toilet, scattering my thoughts before making them disappear completely. Alright, I'm just gonna say it. Good things happen when you wing it, right?

"Y'ain't gonna ferget this, right?" Laura asks before I can say anything, sounding almost desperate. "Y'ain't gonna ferget me?"

"No love, nobody could ever forget you," I assure her. I open my mouth, ready to just let it out, and -

"I jus'... I don't know what's gonna happen, I never know, an' it's tough... an' I don't know how ta say it, but-" 

"Laura..." I say, trying to get her attention.

"It's jus'... I don't want to put so much time into it an' then -" 

"Laura," I try again, but she just keeps going.

"An'.. I don't want y'all ta go, but you gotta, an' I don't wanna have ta-"

Nope. She doesn't even get to finish her sentence. I don't know if its the adrenaline rush from finally deciding to tell her how I feel, or something else giving me the guts to do it, but I cut her off, pressing my lips to hers. 

Just as I'd hoped would happen, I feel a spark run through me, a huge rush, as if I've been electrified. 

Laura doesn't react at first, but then she relaxes, her hands cupping my face and holding me closer to her as her eyes flutter closed. My hands go to her waist, pulling her entire body closer to me. Our lips begin to move in sync with each other, and I feel her sigh. 

She tastes like sunshine and whiskey, like summer and something wild, and it makes my head spin. 

Once I trace her bottom lip with my tongue, she pulls back, staying close by leaning her forehead on mine.

"I love you."

The words don't come from me, but Laura. I sit there in shock for a second, not sure if I heard her right or not. But I sit there for too long without saying anything.

She pulls back, standing up.

"Sorry, I jus'- sorry." She turns and sprints up the steps, through the door and away from me before I can say anything to stop her. 

"No!" I shout, as if that can bring her back to me. I scramble to stand, running into the screen door before I find the handle and pull it open, getting into the bunkhouse just in time to see Laura's room door close and hear the click of the lock. 

I tear my hands through my hair, cursing myself for being so foolish. Why couldn't I just say it? 

Laura's Point of view

Pain. I feel literal pain when he says nothing. Worse than anything I've felt before. It's as if I have a gaping hole inside of me, like I've been shot through the gut. 

I feel so stupid, so foolish when I pull myself out of his embrace, even though I want to stay there, with him, forever. 

"Sorry," I apologize, feeling even worse. "I jus' - sorry."

I turn and run, feeling like an even bigger coward. But that's nothing compared to the emptiness I feel when he doesn't come after me. I stumble up the stairs, my vision blurry from the tears that are threatening to spill over, and I'm grateful that everyone else is asleep so they don't see me like this.

Once I get to my room, I lock the door. I don't want anyone to come in for a long time. The only person here that can console me is the reason that I'm crying right now. 

I lean against the inside of the door, sliding down until I'm sitting on the floor, wiping my wet eyes with the back of my hand.

What was I thinking? It's only been a couple months, he's probably still thinking of going home, not me. Why did I think that he felt the same way? 

There were all those little things, the smiles, the late night talks, the long rides, that made me hopeful that maybe he loved me too. And that kiss. He had to have felt the same spark I did. It was impossible to ignore. 

Maybe I said it at the wrong time.

Maybe I should have waited until he said it first. If he was going to, that is.

Well, I can't go back in time and change it. 

What do I do now?

Louis' point of view

I can hear her sniffling through the wall that separates our rooms. I feel so awful, but I can't bring myself to go tell her.

Maybe it's better this way. This way we won't have to go through the long distance, and I won't have a relationship to mess up. She won't have to spend months without contact with a boyfriend who's thousands of miles away. She'll find someone who can say how he feels without making her cry.

No matter how many times I tell myself that that's the truth, that she's better off without me, I still feel sick to my stomach. I want to fix this, but I don't know where to start. 

What do I do now? 

Laura's Point of view

I reach for my phone, searching for the person who might be able to help me. When I find his name, I push the call button and put the phone to my ear.

"What?" Jeremy's groggy voice comes through the line.

"Jerbear, I need yer help. I dunno what ta do."

By now I've moved to the bathroom, and am sitting on the closed toilet seat, trying to keep anyone, mostly Louis, from hearing what I'm saying. 

"What kinda help?" he asks.

"It's..." I sigh. "It's Louis. I told 'im."

"Told 'im what? That ya love 'im?"

"Uh huh. But..." I start to feel my eyes tearing up again.

"But what?"

"He... He didn't -" a broken sob escapes my mouth.  "He didn't say it back." I break down into a full on sobbing mess, not even trying to hold it in.

"What?!" He waits for me to calm down a little, then angrily asks, "d'ya want me ta come over there an' kick 'is ass?"

I shake my head. "No, you can stay there. I jus' don't know what ta do."

"Do you love 'im?"

"Mm-hmmm," I say, nodding.

"Do you still think 'e loves you?"

"I dunno! Iff'n I knew that, I wouldn't be in here!"

"Well, I don't think you should give up on 'im... not yet. Maybe 'e was jus' surprised that ya said it."

"But I messed shit up, how do I fix it?" 

"Tell me what happened, we'll go from there."

"Well, we was sitting on th' steps, talkin'. An then 'e kissed me. Like full on kissed me. So then I told him, an' 'e didn't say anything. Nothin'. Then I said I was sorry, an' ran upstairs. Then I called you."

There's nothing but complete silence for a few seconds until Jeremy speaks.

"I think I got an idea."


	53. Chapter 53

Louis' Point of View

"I love you," she says, sitting next to me on the porch.

I don't say anything back. I can't. I'm completely frozen, I can't move at all. It's like I'm stuck in my head, able to watch, but unable to move a single muscle.

"Louis?" She says, her eyes searching my face, filled with disappointment. Soon tears start to fall down her face.

"Why don't you love me?" she cries, pulling away from me. I attempt to move, to keep her in my arms, but I can't find the strength. I must have had a good grip on her though, because she has to pull away pretty hard to shake my hands from her arms.

But she loses her balance, and falls, head first, down the steps.

"No!" I shout, sitting straight up in my bed. I look around and see my dark room. My dark, empty room. With me in my half empty bed.

I lay back down, running my hands over my face.

"It was just a dream, it was just a dream," I tell myself. I have to tell her. I can't do this.

This isn't a good time, but I can't wait.

I swing my legs out onto the floor, walking out my door and over to Laura's. I try to turn the knob, only to find it still locked.

"No..." I almost sob, sliding down the closed door until I'm resting on my knees in front of it, my hand still grasping the doorknob. "No, no, no, no, no..."

I really screwed this up. Now she doesn't want anyone. Her door always opens for me. Except this time.

I lean my head against the wooden surface as the first silent tear slides down my cheek. It's joined by another, and another, and another, until I'm silently sobbing in front of her door.

I've lost her. And I might never get her back.

Laura's point of view

I unlock my door the next morning, quietly looking around to see if anyone else is up yet.

When I don't see anyone, I step out of my room, my foot catching on something. I look down and see Louis laying on the floor, asleep.

Why's he here? He should be in his own bed, not on the hardwood floor.

Without a second thought, I grab a blanket and a pillow from my bed, then walk back, kneeling by his head and draping the blanket over him. I gently lift his head up, quickly sliding the pillow under it before setting his head back down.

He stirs, and for a second, I'm terrified that he'll wake up and see me.

He reaches out, toward me, and I quickly move backward as his hand searches for something. He turns his head, nuzzling into the pillow, then wraps his arms around it, pulling the pillow into him and mumbling something I can't make out.

I smile sadly, then stand and step over him, walking down the steps to where and Zayn is waiting.

"Hey," he says once he sees me. His cheerful smile quickly fades, though, once he sees my red eyes. "What's wrong?"

I shake my head. "It's nothin'."

I keep walking, and he follows me out the door.

"Are you okay?" he asks.

"Yeah. 'm fine," I tell him as we walk down the bunkhouse steps.

He doesn't question it, but I can tell he doesn't believe me.

When we get back, he goes upstairs, and I start on breakfast.

About half an hour later, I change my clothes, then head back downstairs and set the food on the table, then sit down and wait for the guys to come eat.

Sure enough, one by one, they stumble down the stairs, rubbing the sleep from their eyes.

"Morning Laura," Harry mumbles.

"Hey Haz," I say quietly.

"You alright?" he asks, sitting down in the chair by me. I nod, keeping my eyes on my plate.

"So... did anything happen last night?" he questions. Almost immediately I feel the tears pressing against my eyelids. No, I'm not going to cry. Not anymore.

Just as I think I've gotten myself put back together, Louis comes walking down the stairs.

"Nope," I tell Harry, eating the last fork full of eggs off of my plate before standing and putting my plate in the sink, then sliding my boots on.

"I'll be out in th' barn," I call before walking out the screen door. I walk down the steps and out to the barn, climbing up into the hay loft and sitting on a bale, looking out the window.

Jeremy has a plan, but I'm still scared it won't work. What if he really doesn't love me, and I was just thinking the wrong thing? What if I'm wrong about this and I look stupid? Will he laugh at me?

No, he's not like that. But what's gonna happen? I don't have any control over this situation, and that scares me.

But what if he does love me? It's hard for me to believe he doesn't, but it's a possibility. Everything points to him loving me. But what if I'm just inventing this whole thing, seeing just what I want to see. What if I'm reading too much into this?

Louis' point of view

"Mate, what happened?" Harry asks once Laura's out the door.

"Did you tell her?" Liam questions. I shake my head sadly, looking down at my plate.

"So... what happened?" Niall asks.

"I fucked it up," I tell them, putting my head in my hands, my elbows resting on the table. "And I don't know how to fix it."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Harry asks softly. I shake my head. If I talk about it, I'll just end up crying again, and I don't want to do that. It's not fun.

"Well, we're here if you change your mind," Liam reminds me.

"Thanks lads." I begin picking at my food, not having much of an appetite for anything. I can hear Laura's voice in my head telling me to eat, I need energy.

"So what are we doing today?" Niall asks.

"Moving cattle again. We still have to sort the ones in the far lot," I answer. Laura told me that yesterday.

"Oh. Right." Everyone falls silent again, and I can't help but feel like I'm to blame for it.

But I can't be my usual self. I'm thinking too much. I don't know if I can get her back, but I want to try. No. I'm going to try.

Last night I must've fallen asleep on the floor outside her door, because that's where I woke up this morning. But I know that I didn't take a pillow and blanket with me when I left my room.

Both items came from Laura's room. The smell of her on them told me so. She must have cared enough to give them to me. That gives me hope that maybe I can get her to give me a chance.

"Well, I'm going to head out and get started," Liam says as he stands from the table, setting his plate in the sink and going out the door. Niall and Zayn follow, leaving Harry and I alone at the table.

Harry's Point of View

Laura looks sad, Louis looks sad, and I have no idea what went down. They aren't talking to each other, they aren't even really looking at each other, and it's putting everyone else on edge. We're all treading lightly, trying not to start a fight or make anyone cry.

The strange atmosphere remains, even when we head down the road to the Wilder's, Laura's guitar in the back of the truck. When we get there, Laura walks over to Amy, leaving the lads and I to make our way over to our usual table by ourselves. Erica and Ann are waiting, and I see Louis grimace when he sees Niall hug Ann tightly.

We sit down, most of us talking with the girls. But Louis is just staring at Laura with an expression on his face that can only be described as that of a kicked puppy. She's not looking at him, in fact, she's making a very obvious point of not looking at him.

I wonder what happened.

Louis' Point of View

As I watch them set up their stuff like they always do, I notice that Laura seems nervous. Her hands are shaking, and she took two shots instead of her usual one. By that alone I could have figured out something was up. Something big is gonna happen tonight.

The first song goes good, Laura seems to relax a bit once she starts singing, but she won't look at me, and that kills me. I knew I screwed something up last night, when I didn't say anything back. I was too surprised that she said it first to do anything afterward. By the time my brain processed what she said, she was already up the stairs and in her room, the door locked.

I should have said something. I should have run after her right when she got up. Now I don't know if she still feels the same or not, or if I ruined everything by being stupid and not saying anything.

Between the first and second song, Jeremy does some talking, but I'm not paying attention to his words. I'm watching Laura. She walks back to talk to Kyle, who looks as if he's reassuring her of something. I have a feeling that they're talking about me or one of the lads because Kyle keeps glancing over at our table.

Jeremy looks back at Laura, who smiles at him before Kyle shoves her forward, back toward her mic.

If I didn't know her as well as I do, I wouldn't notice how she's trying to hide her shaking hands.

She looks at Jeremy as she grabs ahold of her mic with trembling fingers. He nods, encouraging her to continue.

She clears her throat, then takes a shaky breath.

"Hey everybody, how're ya doin' tonight?" she says, getting a good amount of cheers from the crowd, which makes her smile. This smile has less of a nervous look than the previous one, but I can still sense that she's not quite sure of what she's doing.

"So, um... 'fore we start this next song, I gotta say somethin'. I know this 's usually Jeremy's thing, gettin' all sentimental an stuff, but I thought I'd try it. So this next song is fer a specific someone."

Someone from the crowd calls out, "are they here?"

Laura nods. "Yeah, they're here," she says, smiling a bit.

"Who is it?" someone else yells out. She laughs a little bit.

"I ain't tellin' ya who it is."

"Aww... why not?" Jeremy asks.

"Cause I think 'e's smart 'nuff ta figure it out fer himself." She gives him a look that says not to push his luck, and he stays quiet, a knowing smile on his face.

"So... here goes nothin'! By th' way, I'd like ta thank Jeremy an Kyle fer learnin' th' guitar part ta this song pretty much overnight. Thank you guys fer always bein' there."

There's a bit of applause as she stops to clear her throat again.

"Any who, 'fore I lose my nerve an' start cryin', we should start."

She nods at Jeremy, who begins strumming his guitar, Kyle soon joining in.

She keeps her face tilted downward, even when she starts to sing.

_Last night I was pouring out my heart like a waterfall to you._

_And with one kiss, I was a runaway train, flying off the track to you._

I've heard this song before, but I'm not quite getting it... who is this guy that she's singing to?

_'I love you' came flooding out._

_Couldn't make it stop, couldn't shut my mouth._

_I felt like a fool when I lied and said I was sorry._

_But I unapologize, I meant every word._

_Won't take back the way I feel about you._

_I can't unsay what you heard._

_Cause you heard me right._

_And I won't try to fight them back or hide my feelings for you._

_I unapologize._

There's a bit of a guitar break before she keeps going, still keeping her eyes on her feet.

_You know people say a lot of things that they don't really mean._

_And last night I told a little white lie, hoping you'd forget the scene._

She looks up, staring straight into my eyes for a fraction of a second, and it feels like I can't move. I can't breathe for a few seconds.

_Where it felt like a movie under the porch light._

_Couldn't help myself when you held me tight._

Then she looks away, her eyes going back to the wood planks under her feet as she continues.

_Said what I meant then I lied and said I was sorry._

She sings the chorus again, and my head is spinning with thoughts. This sounds so familiar. Laura said she loved me last night after I kissed her, then she said she was sorry, just like in the song.

_I unapologize_

She takes a deep breath, as if to gain a bit of courage, before she looks at me again, but this time she doesn't look away. She keeps singing, and as the rest of the world fades away, leaving only her and I, it finally clicks.

_Oh there's no time to be holding it all in and trying to pretend that I don't feel anything._

_Oh, I shouldn't have said I'm sorry._

It's me.

She puts so much emotion into her voice that I can tell she means every word, just like she's saying. Relief floods through me as I realize...

She still loves me.

I find myself smiling back at her, watching as her small smile grows into a huge grin.

_I meant every word_

_Won't take back the way I feel about you._

_I can't unsay what you heard._

_Cause you heard me right_

_And I won't try to fight them back or hide my feelings for you._

_I unapologize._

_Cause you heard me right, yeah._

_I unapologize._

I can tell that Jeremy has seen her smile grow, and keeps looking between the two of us, a knowing smile on his face.

He knew. He knew this entire time and he didn't tell me. He knew she loved me too. Jerk.

I'm not mad though, I'm still smiling, even when they have to pick up their things and take them back out to their trucks.

I get out of my seat, following Laura as she goes outside.

"Hey, wait a minute!" I say, smiling as she turns around at the sound of my voice and stops, letting Jeremy and Kyle walk on ahead of her.

"So, um..." she says, looking down at her feet.

I smile at how cute she is, then take the guitar case from her hand and set it on the ground, taking her hands in mine. She won't look up at me, and I can feel the fear radiating off of her in waves. It's a strange thing. I never thought she'd be afraid of something like this. But then, I'm not one to talk.

I can't think of anything to say, so I put a finger under her chin and tilt her face up to look at me.

There's so much hope in her eyes, but under it I can see that she's scared. She shouldn't be though.

She seems surprised when I press my lips to hers, then I feel her relax, her hands finding their way to my hair as mine go to the small of her back, pulling her into me. It's a short, sweet kiss, not lasting nearly long enough.

"I was trying to find a way to tell you, but you wouldn't stop talking. Then you said it and I was so surprised and... I couldn't react. I'm sorry I made you cry. But I - I love you too, Laura."

As soon as I say it, I see her face light up, the brightness returning to her eyes along with her wide smile.

"Really?"

I set my forehead on hers, smiling.

"Really really."

The next morning, Hanna and Johnny are running through the door before we've even finished breakfast, excitedly yelling to Laura as they clamber up onto the stools by the counter that they both lost a tooth, and that they got five dollars each from the tooth fairy.

"No way!" Laura exclaims, setting a plate of pancakes in front of both of them.

They both explain excitedly what went down, how both of them lost their teeth - Johnny got hit with a baseball when Jeremy accidentally threw it too hard, and Hanna bit into a corn cob and it just got  _stuck_! - and Laura listens intently, leaning on the counter in front of them and resting her chin in her hand.

"There you are," Sheila says as she walks through the door. "I told you not to go runnin' off like that!"

"Sorry Ma, we was just excited," Hanna says, her mouth full of pancake.

"Well, don't do it again," Sheila says as she ruffles their hair. "Thank you for watching them," she tells Laura.

The tall girl - my  _girlfriend_ , it's still weird to say that - shrugs. "It's nothin'. They ain't too bad."

After that, I sort of zone out, just watching Laura as she talks with Sheila about their plans for the day.

Laura woke me up this morning by jumping on my bed, then asking if I wanted pancakes or waffles for breakfast. When I asked what the hell she was talking about, she repeated the question, and after I said pancakes, she had licked my nose and run out the door, yelling a 'good morning' back at me.

When I'd walked downstairs a few minutes later, she had the radio on while she flipped pancakes on the griddle, pouring batter as she danced around the room, quietly singing along to the song.

"Why have I never seen this before?" I had asked as I sat down at the counter.

"You don't us'ly come down till it's all ready," she had replied, not seeming fazed by me watching her. 

We stayed like that for awhile, until the rest of the lads came downstairs, and then we all sat down at the table. Then Hanna and Johnny came, and that's where we are now.

"Well, I'll see you tomorrow then!" Sheila calls with a smile as she walks out the door.

Laura waves, then turns back to Hanna and Johnny.

"So whaddya wanna do?" she asks.

"Are we staying the night here?" Hanna asks. Laura shakes her head.

"Naw, we're gonna drive ya back home 'fore ya go ta bed," she answers.

And after a long day of playing tag, taking them out to the creek, fishing, then splashing each other, Laura and I drive them back to their house. Well, Laura drives. I ride in the passenger seat while Hanna and Johnny sit in the back.

"Lulu?" Hanna asks.

"What, honey?" Laura answers.

"Is Louis your boyfriend?"

My heart skips a couple beats, knowing that we've been sort of obvious about it today. Laura looks over at me, a wide grin on her face.

"What makes ya think that?" she asks.

"Well, he's been followin' you all day, an' he won't stop looking at you," Johnny says.

"And you let him grab your butt!" Hanna shouts, making both Laura and I laugh.

"Told ya they saw that," she mutters at me with a shake of her head. I shrug unapologetically. I saw the opportunity, and I took it. Sue me.

"Is he?" Hanna asks.

Laura looks back over at me. "Yeah," she says with a smile.


	54. Chapter 54

Laura's Point of View

"Hey," Louis says from the doorway of my room. He furrows his eyebrows. "What are you doing?"

"Changin' th' bandage," I grumble. I don't have enough hands for this today, and my back is sore, so I can't twist like I usually can, and that's making the simple task ten time harder.

I don't have time for this, church starts in less than two hours, and it takes an hour an a half to get there, and I'm not even half dressed for it.

Louis is lucky, he healed pretty quick, and his shoulder has already mended itself well enough to not need a bandage anymore. He can take showers like a normal person, he just has some scars on his shoulder.

"You want help?" he asks.

I feel my shoulders slump a little. "Yeah, please."

Louis' Point of View

I know she hates asking for help, she likes to feel that she can do it on her own, but I also know when she's hurting, and needs a break.

"You can probably sit down," I mutter in her ear. I swear this pastor is taking twice as long as he normally does for the prayers, and of course everyone stands for them.

Laura shakes her head determinedly, shifting on her feet, her hands on the back of the pew in front of us to help support herself. I see her right arm start to shake, and wrap my arm around her, gently pulling her over to lean on me. She goes easily enough, letting me take most of her weight and hold it up as she leans her head on my shoulder. The way she doesn't protest tells me that it hurts more than she lets on, but I sort of already knew that.

Laura's never been one to complain.

When we finally get to sit down again, Laura stays cuddled into my side, nuzzling her nose into my shoulder and muttering a 'thank you.'

She stays like that until we have to get up again, this time to leave and go home.

And later, when she's folding the laundry, she brings it over to the couch where I'm sitting, and sets the basket between us. I reach over, grabbing a few shirts, and start folding them without her asking, laughing when she points out that I'm folding them the 'wrong' way.

Even with having to refold most of the clothes, she's still done with the laundry in about half as much time as she usually is, which leaves time for about an hour long nap on the couch.

Which is what we do. Laura snuggles into my neck, and I wrap my arms around her as she lays on top of me, her fingers tracing the scars on my shoulder and chest.

"Thanks fer th' help, sugar," she says. I smile. She's called me sugar a lot lately. I think it's become my new name, so to speak. I don't remember her saying it to anyone else for the past couple days.

"No problem," I reply, trying to think of something I can call her. 'Love' seems a little too generic, and I use it for my sisters, so it's not quite as special. Niall already calls Ann 'darling,' so that would be a little unoriginal. 'Babe' and 'baby' are cute, but I've used them before. I want something different.

"ayv yelique asvnasdi nihi anadanvtesgv," (I can feel you thinking) she says, turning so her chin is resting on my chest as she looks at me.

"Lomasi, what's that mean?" I ask.

"Pretty flower," she tells me. "Why?"

"Is that something that just your family calls you?"

" 't's my name," she says. "Like, my Cherokee name."

"What's my name?"

"Louis."

"No, like, is there a word for that in Cherokee?"

She sort of shakes her head. "Not so much."

I pout.

"Don't be sad," she says. "Yer name's sugar, cause yer sweet." She kisses my cheek.

"I love you," I tell her, and I can physically feel her blush.

"Love you too," she replies.

I tug on her shirt a little. "C'mere."

She shifts up a little bit, so that her face is over mine, and smiles down at me, some of her hair falling into my face.

"No! Don't do the sex thing on the couch!" I hear Niall shout. Laura doesn't even flinch. She just looks over at him where he's standing by the fridge, a bag of chips in his hand.

"It's my house, I can do whatever th' hell I want," she says with a smirk, watching as Niall's eyes get wide and he runs up the stairs to his room.

"Those were my chips," Laura mumbles, snuggling further into my neck and closing her eyes.

She stays pretty sassy for the rest of the day, even when we get to the high school for her practice, Liam following behind the two of us as we walk down the hallway. He wanted to come with us so he could see Erica.

However, when the short girl spots us, she doesn't run straight to Liam.

"I saw that!" she shouts at Laura, leaving the circle that the teams' formed as they pass a ball around. "I saw what you did!" She runs right over to Laura, punching her in the shoulder as a greeting. "Why didn't you tell me anything?"

Laura sort of laughs, glancing at me. "Weren't much ta tell. Thought you knew what happened."

Erica glares up at the taller girl, not happy with her answer.

Laura sighs, rolling her eyes. "Hey, guess who's got a boyfriend?" she asks rhetorically.

"Me!" Erica answers, jumping over to Liam and giving him a hug.

Laura shrugs, tugging me over to the bleachers where the coach is sitting.

"How is it?" is the first thing he asks her.

"Better. Got an appointment tamarra ta see how much longer I got 'fore I can play again," she says. They talk for a little bit, then we walk over and sit in the bleachers.

Almost immediately, the other girls are running over, asking Laura what happened, if she's okay, what going on, how long it'll be until she can play again, and - my personal favorite - why I'm there.

"Well, iff'n ya  _haveta_ know," Laura starts, acting as if it's some big secret, but her mouth is twitching, threatening to turn upward into a smile. " 'e wanted ta come sit with 'is  _girlfriend_ , even though she can't play."

This sends her teammates into a round of shouting, some of them hugging Laura, pulling her up and surrounding her until I can't see her anymore.

"Laura, are you alive in there?" I ask jokingly.

"No, come an' save me!" she yells dramatically.

This leads to a bit of play fighting, trying to get through the crowd of girls to get to Laura, who keeps dramatically calling for me.

"I got you!" I say once I reach her, wrapping my arms around her. She squeals, literally  _squeals_ , right in my ear, and turns around, rubbing her nose against mine.

Liam's Point of View

"So how've you been?" Erica asks me as we walk out of the high school.

I shrug. "Pretty good. We've been busy this week."

She nods. "So... do you know how long it'll be until you leave?" she asks timidly.

I shake my head. "No, they ever told us." I see her visibly deflate at my answer. "I don't really want to go yet, if I'm honest. I want to stay here for a while longer."

"Really?" she asks. "How come?"

"Well, it's really nice out here," I start, glancing down at where her hand is wrapped up in mine. "And there's this girl..."

"There is?" Erica asks. "Who is it?"

"Well, she's kinda short...  _er_  than I am," I say, amending my words when I see the look she gives me. "And she's funny. Pretty cute, I'd say."

"What else?"

"Hmm..." I say, pretending to think. "I don't know. That's about it."

"Liam!" she giggles. "What's her name?"

"Eeeeeeelouise," I answer jokingly. "No, that's not it. Emily. No, that isn't right," I say, pulling out random names to make her laugh. "Wait, I know! Her name is Erica. And she has a really cute laugh."

Laura's Point of View

"So what's th' verdict?" I ask.

"Well," Doc Martin starts, "It's healin' pretty well. It oughta be alright by the weekend, if you're careful with it."

"So I can play in th' tournament Saturday?" I ask, just to make sure. He nods.

"Yes, if you're careful. Don't push yourself too hard," he cautions.

"But not in th' game tamarra. That's too soon." He nods again.

When I get back to the ranch, I can hear the guys in the sorting pen, moving the cattle and sorting them.

Since its almost supper time, I head into the main house to start on cooking.

"There you are," I hear Daddy say after I put the potatoes in the oven.

"Hey," I reply, wiping the counter off.

"What'd th' doc say?" he asks.

"It's healin' pretty fast," I tell him. "Says I can play in th' tournament Saturday, long 's 'm careful."

"That's good," he says. I nod.

"Yep."

"So, what's this I hear about you an' that boy?" he asks. I smile.

"Louis?"

"Yeah, that'n," he replies, leaning against the counter next to where I'm pulling plates from the cupboard.

"What about it?"

"When were ya plannin' on tellin' me?"

"Was gonna tell ya when I knew it was serious," I answer.

"When would that be?"

"Prob'ly tanight after supper."

"So it's serious then."

"Yessir."

"You do know he's leavin', don't ya?"

My smile fades a little.

"Yeah, I know 'e's gonna haveta leave."

"How's that gonna work?"

"We'll figure it out," I say, picking up the plates and walking out to set them on the table.

"Hey," I hear another voice say. I look up, and see the guys walking through the door.

"What are you doing?" Louis asks.

"Settin' th' table," I reply. Isn't it sort of obvious?

"No, go sit down. We can do it," he says, taking the plate that I'm holding and handing it to Harry.

I tilt my head to one side. "You sure?"

"Yeah. Go sit down or something. You're supposed to take it easy," he replies, already moving around the table to put things in their place.

I smile, pulling out my chair and sitting down. "Thanks, sugar."

"You're welcome, sunshine," he says with a smile.

Harry's Point of View

"Hey Haz?" I hear someone call from the doorway of my room. I pull back the covers, and Louis climbs in next to me.

"What's up?" I ask.

"I dunno. I wanted to talk to somebody," he says vaguely.

"I'm sure Laura would love if you talked to her," I say with a suggestive eyebrow wiggle.

"I'm can't talk to Laura, it's about her," he groans.

"What about Laura?" I ask cautiously. "Is anything wrong?"

"No, everything is right, but..."

"But you want the sex things to start and you don't know if that's what she wants?" I offer, finishing his sentence.

He looks over at me. "Are you some kind of psychic or something?"

I shake my head. "You've been giving her that look all day, like you want her."

"Is it that obvious?" he asks, hiding his face in his hands.

"Just a little bit," I reply.

He groans. "She's so frustrating though."

"Then tell  _her_ ," I laugh. "Maybe she wants it too."

"I know," he says, "I just don't want to push her. She's had some bad experiences, and I don't want to be one of them."

"Maybe you should talk to her about it," I suggest. I'm not sure what sort of experiences he's talking about, but I'm not going to pry, it's none of of my business.

"Maybe," he says. "I'll do it later though. I'm sleepy."

Louis' Point of View

"Is she coming back out?" Liam asks, looking toward the bunkhouse.

We're finishing up all the sorting and tagging of the calves we brought in last week, hopefully this will be the last day of it. Laura was sitting on the fence, telling us which gates to open and close, but she went inside a little while ago, saying she'd be back in a few minutes.

"She said she would be," I reply, trying to keep my horse from moving around so much. "I'll go ask."

I ride up to the bunkhouse, tying the reins to the porch railing before making my way inside.

"Laura?"

I hear something drop from upstairs, and head up the steps.

"Laura?" I call again.

I don't hear anything else, so I walk over to her room, seeing the door slightly open. Maybe she's in there. She might've fallen asleep or something?

"Laura?" I try again as I push the door open. I see something move, and as I step inside, I see Laura underneath the blankets on her bed.

"What are you doing?" I ask curiously. It's at least a hundred degrees in here, why is she under a blanket?

"Nothin'," she replies, her cheeks tinted a little pinker than usual. I decide not to ask about it, she's probably just hot. She is under a blanket.

"Are you going to come back outside?" I ask.

She nods. "Yeah, jus' gimme a minute."

"Okay, we were just wondering if you were coming back out," I say.

"Yeah. 'm comin'," she says.

"Okay." I smile at her, and she returns it. "I'll go... back outside then."

"Okay."

I turn to walk out, pulling the door shut behind me, and Laura whimpers, making me turn back quickly.

"Are you alright?" I ask, my eyes scanning the room for anything that might have changed.

She nods, her face steadily becoming more and more red.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, 'm fine," she says, her voice cracking.

I don't move, not sure what to do. Until I see something move under the blanket.

"What are you doing?" I ask, my eyebrows furrowing.

She looks at me, and I can see the internal war she must be having.

"I um... I may or may not have my hand in my pants right now," she says, looking down at the floor.

"Oh," I say as I realize what she means. "Do you ... d'you want me to leave?"

She blinks, then looks up at me. Now I see how dark her eyes are, nearly glazed over.

"You don't... you don't haveta, iff'n ya don't wanna?" she says, her voice going higher at the end, sounding like she's questioning it herself.

Okay. Deep breath. Your girlfriend is laying in bed, touching herself. And she didn't say that she wanted you to leave. What is the next logical step?  _Does she want help?_  I don't know!  _Well, ask?_

"You gonna jus' stand there?" she asks, pulling me from my thoughts. She doesn't look mad, just curious. Like she doesn't know what I'm going to do, and she's alright with whichever I choose to do.

I shake my head, and walk over toward her. Her eyes follow me as I move, until I stop at the edge of her bed.

"Do you um..." I clear my throat. "Do you want help?"

She blinks slowly, looking up at me.

"D'you wanna help?"

I bite my lip, then nod.

"Then c'mere." She reaches out for me with her not in her pants hand, pulling me down to lay on top of her.

"You sure?" I ask, even though we haven't done anything. She nods, leaning up and pushing her lips out, silently asking for a kiss. I smile, then lean down to press my lips to hers.

And that's when Yankee decides to come running in and wake me up.


	55. Chapter 55

Louis' Point of View

"Are you sure you'll be okay?"

Laura looks down at me from her saddle. "I'll be fine, sugar. Ya don't need ta worry."

We went to get her stitches out earlier today, and now she's got it in her head that she can compete in the barrel racing contest during the rodeo tonight. Right now, actually. She's already got Rebel saddled up, and they're waiting in the holding pen for her chance to get into the arena to warm up. 

We've been up in the bleachers with the rest of our group of friends for about the past hour, watching the different events like bull riding and calf roping. 

"Louis, I'll be a'right. Iff'n it hurt, I wouldn't be up here," she assures me. I know she's telling the truth, but I also know that she took enough ibuprofen to make her not able to feel anything at all a few minutes ago when she thought I wasn't looking. 

"If you get hurt," I start, but she cuts me off.

"It'll be my own fault, I know." She smiles down at me. "But I ain't gonna get hurt. I'll be fine."

"I was gonna say that I'll still feel bad, but that works too," I say. "Be careful though, please."

"I will," she promises. 

"Ten minutes warm up!" someone calls from the gate. 

"Well, gotta go," she says. 

"You're coming back though, right?"

She nods. "Yeah. Gotta draw ta get th' order." 

I nod, and she nudges Rebel's sides with her heels, and they move toward the gate, along with the rest of the riders. I climb up onto the fence to sit and watch as she takes Rebel around the arena a few times, letting him stretch his legs out and get warmed up before starting the barrel pattern, going slowly around the three large barrels set up on the dirt floor. She doesn't seem to be in any pain, which is good. 

About seven or so minutes later, she reins the big horse to a stop in front of me. 

"Are you done?" I ask. She nods. 

"Yeah. Don't wanna wear 'im out."

We sit there and watch as the other riders take their horses around the arena, their hooves stirring up a cloud of dust that settles in the air, making it seem thicker. 

When the officials call time, everyone clears out of the arena. and the crowd starts to file back into the bleachers. Most of them had left for the intermission, which was when the competitors got their chance to warm up their horses. 

A truck goes out into the arena, dragging a wooden board behind it to smooth out the dirt, and the competitors all form a line to draw their spot in the lineup. 

Laura pulls Rebel over by the fence, motioning for me to climb on behind her. 

"Is this allowed?" I ask once I pull myself up, wrapping my arms around her. 

She nods. "Good luck charm."

"What spot do you want?"

"Somewhere between 'leven an' fifteen," she says with a smile, nudging Rebel forward as the line moves. "Not too early, not too late." 

Soon we're at the front of the line, and Laura turns to me. 

"You pull it," she says. I do as she says, reaching my hand into the hat that's held out to me, pulling out a piece of paper with a number on it. 

"What's it say?" she asks as I unfold it. 

"Thirteen," I reply with a smile. Laura tells her number to the lady standing next to the man with the hat, and she hands Laura a large piece of paper and a couple safety pins before we move on, letting the next person draw their number. 

"What's that?" I ask. 

"My number," Laura replies. "Can ya pin it ta my shirt please?"

I nod, and she hands it back to me, pulling Rebel off to the side behind the girl with a number twelve pinned to the back of her shirt. I take one of the pins and stick it between my teeth, holding the other up to her back along with the number. 

"Don't stab me," she jokes, half turning around.

"Quit moving," I tell her, talking through my teeth.

She holds still long enough for me to stick the pins through her shirt and the paper, securing it in place. 

"There," I say once I'm done. 

"Is it right side up?" she asks with a joking smile. 

"Hey, that was one time!" I protest, knowing that she's thinking of the time at the fair when I pinned Hanna's number on upside down and we didn't catch it until after she was in the show ring and it was too late to fix it. "Yes, it's right side up."

She laughs a little, starting to follow the other riders as they move toward the long alley that leads to the arena. 

"And at least I pinned it straight," I say, hooking my chin over her shoulder. She'd pinned several kid's numbers onto their backs the night of the show, and most of them had been crooked because she couldn't use both hands right, on account of her clipboard that she just had to hang on to. (Not sure why, but she got fussy about it when I suggested setting it on the ground for a little bit so she could use both of her hands.) 

"That weren't my fault," she shoots back. "They kept movin'."

"Sure," I agree, deciding to let her win this one, and turn my face into her hair. 

She always smells good, but she smells extra good tonight for some reason. Maybe it's because she's excited, the adrenaline bringing out her natural smell even more. 

"So, how does this work?" I ask.

"There's three barrels, right?" Laura answers. I nod. "Gotta go 'round 'em 's fast 's ya can, fastest time wins."

"Are there penalties or something if you take too long?" I ask.

Laura shakes her head. "Naw, but ya can't knock th' barrels over. Adds five seconds ta yer time."

"What if you knock over all three?"

"They say that ya get a free soda as a consolation," she laughs. 

"Do they really?"

"I dunno. I ain't knocked over all three barrels 'fore."

Rebel jumps a little bit as I hear a small voice call for Laura. 

"Lulu!" 

I turn my head, looking over at the fence, to see Hanna hanging onto the top rail, held in place by Kyle. 

"What honey?" Laura asks with a smile, moving Rebel closer to the little girl. 

"Got somethin' for you," Hanna says, holding out her hand. I can see a bright turquoise feather hanging from the string she holds, a few bright colored beads attached above it. 

"Aw, thanks!" Laura says, reaching out to take it. 

"It's gonna help you win," Hanna says proudly.

"You bet it is," Laura says. She reaches over to tie it into Rebel's mane, the bright colors standing out against the black of the hair. "Thank you."

Hanna smiles, then turns to her brother. 

"Well, put me down, silly! We gotta go watch!" she says excitedly. Kyle laughs, then sets her down on the ground. 

"Good luck," he calls as Hanna drags him off to their spot with the others in the bleachers. 

Laura smiles, and then there's loud music playing, and the first girl is galloping down the alley and into the arena. 

Laura watches intently, even though it's hard to see because we're a little ways from the arena itself, and in between there are several chutes and pens, each of them holding different animals. 

The rider in the arena rounds the first barrel without a problem, then goes across to the next, turning tightly and nearly knocking the barrel over before darting to the third, this time making a wide circle around it before taking off for the gate, crossing the barrier when the clock next to it reaches fifteen seconds. She speeds past us, pulling on the reins in an attempt to slow her horse down. 

"Is that a good time?" I ask Laura, squeezing my arms around her, one wrapped around her waist and the other across her body, my hand on her shoulder. 

"Pretty good," she replies. "A little slow fer what she's up against, but it's still good."

"What's really good?"

"Around thirteen an a half is real good," she says. "That's 'bout th' fastest I've seen here."

We watch the next few riders like that, me curled around Laura, my chin on her shoulder. I can feel her heartbeat speed up each time she nudges Rebel forward, closer to the gate. I have a feeling that the big horse is feeding off of her excitement, judging by the way he's almost dancing in place underneath us. 

There's a girl with a black horse that's almost as big as Rebel who knocks over two fo the three barrels, adding ten seconds to her almost winning time. 

After her, there's a guy with a white horse, and he knocks into one of the barrels, but it doesn't fall, keeping his time lower, the clock only reaching fourteen and a half seconds.

"They go really fast," I say quietly once he gallops past us, creating a small breeze. 

"It's real fun though," Laura replies. "Iff'n ya want, I'll take ya 'round after it's over."

"That would be cool," I agree, kissing her cheek. 

I feel her smile as she watches the next girl speed out of the alley. Her run is pretty smooth, missing all three barrels and breezing through the gate with a time of thirteen and three quarters of a second. 

"That's Ann's sister," Laura tells me as she rides past us. "She's us'lly in th' top three ev'ry year."

The next horse stumbles while turning around the second barrel, something that makes Laura wince.

"Always nervous that's gonna happen ta me," she says quietly. "People die when horses stumble sometimes."

"Really?" I ask. I had no idea this was such a risky sport. Is it a sport? It must be. "Has it happened here?"

She nods. "It 'as a while 'fore I started. Nice horse too. Broke 'is leg, broke th' rider's neck an' a few of 'is ribs. 'E didn't make it ta th' hospital." 

"What makes them stumble like that?"

"Th' ground gets loose 'cause of ev'ryone ridin' over it so much," she explains. "Gets harder fer th' horses ta keep their footing."

I nod. "I hope that doesn't happen to you."

"It shouldn't," she assures me. "Rebel's real good at stayin' on 'is feet. It's th' mustang in 'im."

"Mustang?"

"Wild horses. Dam 'as a quarter horse, sire 'as a mustang," she explains. "That's why 'e's so big." 

"Mmmm, I like when you use fancy words," I say, grinning into her neck. 

"Really?"

"Yeah. Keep going. Talk genetics to me." 

"Yer weird," she says with a laugh. 

"Ten!" the man at the gate calls. Laura stiffens, her heartbeat picking up again. 

"You prob'ly oughta get where you can see," she says. "It ain't too long 'fore it's my turn."

"Okay." I slide off of Rebel, my feet stirring up small clouds of dust when they touch the ground. "Good luck," I say, looking up at her. 

"Thanks," she says, her hands already fidgeting with the reins. Rebel starts his impatient dancing again, picking up on her adrenaline. The next rider speeds past us, and Laura looks out at the arena before she turns back to me. 

"Are you nervous?"

She shakes her head, her grin getting wider. "Naw. Gettin' excited though."

I smile. I should probably go find somewhere to watch. I look around, deciding on climbing the fence to watch when Laura makes her run. 

"Louis," I hear her say. "C'mere."

I step over to her, setting my hand on her knee. "What?"

She leans over in her saddle, putting a hand on the back of my neck, and pulls me toward her until her lips press against mine. I reach up, sliding my hand into her hair, and push myself up onto my tiptoes so I can tilt my head to the side, giving me a better angle as I move my mouth against hers. The hand that's on her knee slides higher, squeezing her jean-clad thigh, and she breathes in sharply, her teeth biting down on my bottom lip.

"Easy," I laugh, pulling back a little.

When I look back up at her, she blinks slowly, sliding her tongue out over her lip. 

"Good luck," I say cheekily. She laughs. 

"Thanks, sugar." She sits up straight again, tugging on the reins as Rebel moves forward a little. 

"Thirteen!" the man at the gate calls. 

"That's me," she says, walking Rebel forward as she waves at me. I wave back, then climb onto the fence to watch. 

I watch as Laura takes Rebel to where there's a line of tape across the dirt floor of the alley, then stops him, saying something before she looks out ahead of her. I see her take a deep breath, settling down in her saddle, and then she loosens the reins, and they take off, jumping right into a gallop.  

She's already going at what seems to be a breakneck pace by the time they cross the line that starts the clock, and it's only three seconds before they're rounding the first barrel, staying close to it to save time. 

Once the first barrel is circled, Laura reins Rebel across the arena to the second, leaning low over his neck as she holds on to the saddle horn with one hand, the reins in her other hand. 

They're around that barrel before the clock reaches eight seconds, and taking off for the third, which is a bit farther away than the distance between the first and second barrels. 

When the clock gets to nine and a half, Laura turns Rebel back toward the gate, and they're charging toward the finish. I can hear Rebel breathing, the sound almost like a locomotive, as they dash past me, the time on the clock thirteen and a quarter seconds. 

I jump down from the fence, running after them, until I meet them as they come back. 

Laura's face is flushed, her hair swept back from her face, which is nearly split in half from her wide grin. 

"What'd it say?" she asks as she hops down off of Rebel. 

"Thirteen and a quarter." 

Her jaw drops as her eyes widen in disbelief. "What?" she asks. "Yer shittin' me, that's crazy."

I shake my head. "No, I'm serious."

After about two or three minutes of jumping up and down, hugging her horse, and squealing, Laura drags me over to the fence to watch the rest of the riders go around the barrels. 

There's three left by the time we get there. 

The first is a short girl on a big black horse, and they knock one of the barrels over, adding five seconds to their time, which would have been fourteen and a half seconds. 

The second is a tall, lanky boy who looks about Kyle's age, and he makes it around the barrels on his appaloosa horse in thirteen and a half seconds. 

The last is an older girl, maybe a year or two older than Laura, and she and her horse end with a time of fourteen seconds. 

The riders are called back into the arena so that the results can be announced. Laura climbs back into the saddle and rides off, following the others into the bright lights. 

Once all of the competitors are lined up, some of the horses dancing impatiently under the amount of attention they're getting, then the official starts to list the times of each ride, starting with the slowest. As each rider is called, they nudge their horse forward, waving at the crowd. 

The first six riders all have times that are over fifteen seconds, the next four between fourteen and fifteen seconds, and the next three after that had more than thirteen and a half seconds. 

"In second, with a time of thirteen and four tenths of a second, number four, Leslie Kossey!"

Ann's sister rides forward, smiling as she accepts the trophy that is handed to her. There are several camera flashes, and then they're moving on to the next rider. 

"And in first place, with a time of thirteen and three tenths, number thirteen, Laura Johnson!"

Laura nudges Rebel forward, grinning widely, and takes her trophy as it's held out to her. I see her say thank you before she's turning toward the people in front of the line of riders, smiling as they take pictures. 

As she backs Rebel into the line again, she glance over at me, and when she sees me looking at her, she holds the trophy up, pointing at it as if I didn't just see it get given to her. I shake my head with a laugh, then put two thumbs up.

When she finally rides back out of the arena, she pulls Rebel over to the fence where I'm at, letting me climb on behind her. She takes me over to the trailer, setting her trophy inside the door of the truck before turning Rebel around, going back toward the arena.

"So where are we going?" I ask, hooking my chin over her shoulder. 

"Ta find th' others," she answers, guiding Rebel through the sea of people until we're behind the bleachers that the rest of the group is sitting in. 

"Hey, lady!" Laura calls. Erica immediately turns around, smiling once she sees Laura and I. 

"Hey!" the short girl yells back. "Congrats!"

"Thanks!" Laura yells back. 

"Who are you - oh hey!" Liam says as he turns around.

"Hey yerself," Laura shoots back. 

"Are you coming up here?" Liam asks. "We saved seats for you."

Laura turns to look at me. "You wanna go sit up there?"

"What are you gonna do?" I ask. 

"I dunno. That's why I asked you, silly!"

"Um, I want some candy."

Laura pats her pockets, almost sarcastically. "Well, shit, sugar. I ain't got none."

"Could we maybe go buy some?" I ask, nuzzling into her neck. I can practically feel her roll her eyes, and I'm almost sure she's gonna say no, but then she calls up to Liam, 

"We'll be up in a bit!"

And then we're riding across the fairgrounds to where the concession stands are.

"Whaddya want?" Laura asks. 

"Um...." I hum, looking around at the different vendors. "Ooh! Elephant ears!" I exclaim, pointing toward the pink trailer with a painting of an elephant on the side. 

Laura laughs, reigning Rebel around until we're in line. 

It seems a little weird, being on a horse in the concession line, but as I look around, I see a few other horses in the food lines, some of them with more than one rider. 

When we get to the front of the line, Laura leans in toward the window, telling them our order.

"Two elephant ears, an'... d'ya got any jelly beans?" she asks. 

"Yes ma'am," the lady behind the counter replies. 

"Can I get a cup full o' those? Without th' black'ns please?"

The lady nods, and turns to fry the dough for us. 

"I thought you hated jelly beans," I remark. 

"They ain't fer me," Laura replies. 

After the lady hands Laura our food, and Laura pays for it, after a small argument that concluded with Laura saying that I left my wallet in the truck - which I did on accident - we ride back through the fairgrounds, taking bites of the hot dough and trying not to burn our tongues. 

"So what are the jelly beans for?" I ask. 

"You'll find out," she replies, pulling Rebel off to the side where there's a bench. "Hop off."

We both climb down, sitting on the bench, Laura holding Rebel's reins. 

She pours some of the jelly beans out into her hand, then holds them out. 

"A'right, little man, you earned 'em," she says. Rebel's ears perk up, and he stretches his neck out to eat the candy out of her hand. 

"He eats jelly beans?" 

Laura nods. "Yep. Hates th' black ones though. It's funny when 'e gets one, cause 'e curls 'is lip up an' -"

Just then Rebel squeals, stepping back a little and throwing his head back as his top lip curls up.

"Like that," Laura says with a laugh. " 'M sorry honey, I told 'er no black'ns." She looks through the cup to make sure there aren't any more. "They're all gone now," she assures him, holding out another handful. "See?"

The big horse steps toward her, sniffing the candy before going back to eating. 

After a bit we go back and sit with everyone else, Laura sitting on the end, holding Rebel's reins, and watch the rest of the rodeo, which lasts about an hour after we've sat down. 

Once the last event is over, and everyone in the stands starts slowly making their way out.

"So, you still want a go 'round th' barrels?" Laura asks. I nod. 

"Yeah, sure."

We make our way down to the arena, and Laura shows me where they put the barrels after they're done with them, and together, we set them back up again. 

"You wanna go by yerself, or you want me ta go with ya?" she asks after the barrels are all in place. 

Hmm.. go around by myself and risk death, or go with Laura and..

"Both?" I answer.

Laura shrugs. "Okay. Get up there then." 

I climb into the saddle, and Laura jumps on behind me, letting me hold the reins. 

"Don't go too fast, it's harder ta balance with two people," she says. I nod, then press my heels into Rebel's sides, getting him to move forward. 

The big horse throws his head up and starts trotting into the arena, already angling toward the first barrel. 

"Hang on," Laura cautions as Rebel throws himself into the turn. I grip the saddle horn tightly as he leans a little bit toward the barrel while he turns. 

After we've gone around all three of the barrels, and back into the alley, Laura hops off as I turn Rebel around. 

"Is there anything I should know?" I ask, pulling back on the reins. The big horse is already dancing in place, like he knows what's next. 

Laura shakes her head. "Jus' hang on an' let 'im have 'is head. 'e knows what ta do." 

"Okay." I turn to look out at the arena, concentrating on staying calm. 

I see Laura smile, then she turns and climbs up the fence, sitting on the top rail. 

I furrow my eyebrows in concentration, trying to get a feel for how Rebel's going to take off. It's weird, being used to how one horse moves, and then climbing onto a different one and having to figure out the differences between them. 

Frodo is a big horse, but Rebel's even bigger. He's better conditioned, a bit more muscle in his legs and shoulders, more power behind each footfall. I suppose that's because Laura takes him out at least once every day. He's also more impatient. The longer I hold him back, the more he arches his neck, pushing back against the bit, wanting to move. 

When I think I've prepared myself as well as I can, I take a deep breath, then loosen the reins.

Just as I thought, the big horse jumps forward, and suddenly we're through the gate, the ground going by in a blur of brown dirt and a few greyish stones. Then we're rounding the first barrel, and I nearly forget to grab the saddle horn as Rebel darts to the side, turning tightly around the large metal object. The force of it throws me sideways, but I stay in the saddle, only by some miracle of luck. 

Just as fast as he turns around the first barrel, Rebel's off to the second one, and this time I'm better prepared for the swift turn that he takes, and then the sudden takeoff toward the third barrel. 

I can feel the air rushing past me as Rebel whips around the last barrel, then charges toward the gate. I feel the muscles in his back moving underneath me as everything becomes a colorful blur around me, the only thing in focus being the gate and Rebel's head. I can barely make out Laura's outline as we dash past her, quickly running out of alley to run down. I pull back on the reins, sitting farther back in the saddle, and Rebel slows down, until he's trotting, and then I turn him around, going back to Laura. 


	56. Chapter 56

As I help set things up, I can feel eyes on me. I don't have to turn around to know that it's Louis staring at me.  
The alumni banquet is tonight, and at our last meeting, we decided that it would look better if the entire regional officer team was there instead of just a couple of us.   
Ashley wasn't happy about it.  
So here I am, in my official dress, helping set out the table center pieces and whatever else the older ladies need help with.  
When I'm done, there's at least half an hour before the banquet starts, so I walk back over to sit by Louis.   
"Hey," he says as I sit down. "Are you done?"  
"Fer now, yeah."  
I feel a hand on my leg.  
"And _how_ long until it starts?" he asks, his thumb barely sliding under the fabric of my pencil skirt.   
I look up at the clock, then around the room. There's not too many people here yet. No one would notice if we just left the room for a few minutes.   
"We got half an hour. You wanna get outta here for a 'lil while?"  
He looks up from where his hand is sitting on my leg, his eyes dark.   
"You sure?"  
I nod.  
He doesn't answer, just stands, offering a hand to me as I get to my feet. I take his hand, pulling him out of the large gymnasium and down the empty hallways until we get to the farthest bathroom from the gym, nearly on the other side of the school.  
"Do we have to go in the _girl's_ bathroom?" Louis whines.  
"D'ya wanna go back in th' gym?" I ask.  
"Nevermind," he says, "lead on."  
I push the door open, flicking the lights on, and step inside.   
"God, your legs," he growls once the door shuts, suddenly right behind me. "Your _fucking_ legs."   
His arms snake around my waist, and his mouth attaches itself to my neck.  
"Easy," I tell him. "Gimme a second."  
I pull my jacket off as he pulls me into an empty stall, closing the door as I hang the clothing on a hook. I unhook my scarf and hang it up with my jacket.  
"A'right, go ta town."  
He crowds me up against the wall, his hands on my hips.  
"Your fucking legs look amazing," he growls. "D'you know how hard this is for me?"  
"No, but I gotta feelin' yer gonna tell me," I reply.  
"Damn right." He pushes my skirt up my legs, then picks me up, holding me against the wall with his body as his hands slide over my thighs. He kisses me, and I put my hands on his shoulders, shivering slightly as I feel the lean muscle move under his shirt.   
He's always had nice shoulders, at least since he's been here, but I think they've gotten better over the summer, with all the ranch work he's been doing. My thoughts in the beginning were less than appropriate, but now I just want to sink my teeth into him and never let go.   
"Can I take this off?" he asks, tugging gently at my shirt. I nod, tangling my fingers in his hair.   
I feel a rush of cool air as he hurriedly undoes the buttons on my shirt, pressing a kiss to my skin after each one.  
"You're," he starts, stopping himself as he kisses my collarbone, "so," another kiss "soft."   
After most of the buttons are undone, Louis slides a hand under my thigh, pushing me farther up the wall as the shirt starts to slide off my shoulder.  
"Can I... ?" he asks, his eyes flicking between looking at my face and my chest.   
I nod, and his face lights up like a kid at Christmas.   
The next thing I know, his face is buried between my breasts, and he's humming contentedly.   
I shake my head as I run my fingers through his hair.   
"You enjoyin' yerself?" I ask.  
" 've wanted to do this for awhile," he says, his voice muffled. "You've got nice tits."  
I laugh, my head tilting back to look at the ceiling.  
"Seriously," he says, his face still hidden in my cleavage, "how do you do it?"  
"Push ups an' greasy food," I reply.   
"Really? That's it?" I nod.  
"Worked fer me."  
He just hums happily.   
We stay like that for a little while, mostly because I don't really want to move his face from its spot, and he doesn't seem to want to move either.   
Then my phone rings, and I have to turn and reach into my jacket to grab the device. Louis, of course, doesn't move. Just shifts me in his arms so he can hold me up better.  
I slide the green thingy on the screen, putting the phone to my ear.  
"Hello?"  
"Where are you?" Ann's voice asks. She doesn't sound too concerned. She probably knows where I am, who I'm with, what we're most likely doing.  
"Had ta take care of some stuff. I'll be back soon," I answer.   
"Alright." I hear her tell someone else, most likely Ashley, that I'll be back momentarily, and then she's talking to me again. "There's about twenty minutes left until we're all supposed to be sitting at the table," she tells me.   
"A'right. I'll be there when I'm s'posed ta be. Don't worry."  
"Trust me, I'm not," she says with a laugh. "Tell Louis I say hey."  
"Annie says hey," I tell Louis, carding my fingers through his hair again. He licks the flesh between my breasts as a response, making me giggle. "We'll see ya in a few," I say into the phone, waiting until I hear Ann's reply to hang up and put my phone back in the pocket of my jacket.   
"Whaddya wanna do?" Louis asks, finally lifting his head to look at me. His face is flushed, and his eyes are glazed over.   
"Jus' stickin' yer face in my boobs does that to ya?" I ask, and he nods, shifting me so I can feel him, hard and pressed against me. "Gettin' a lil' worked up, ain't ya?"  
"It's not my fault you look like you do," he replies, his bottom lip half sticking out in a pout.  
"An' I s'pose you want me ta do somethin' 'bout it."  
He shakes his head. "You don't have to if you don't -"   
I cut him off, putting my hand over his mouth.  
"I want to. Now put me down, please."  
"Yes ma'am."   
He sets me down on the floor again, and I put my skirt back where it's supposed to be.  
"I like your hair like this," he murmurs, tucking a strand behind my ear.   
"Good. I like it too." I haven't really done anything to it. I just washed it and let it dry on its own. I hadn't even bothered with putting it up.   
His hand stays in my hair as I kneel, tugging at his belt. He keeps running his fingers through the strands, even after I've gotten his jeans undone.   
"Do you know what you're doing?" Louis asks quietly.  
I shake my head. "Nope. I mean, 've got 'n idea, but I ain't done this 'fore," I answer, tugging his pants down, my eyebrows furrowed in concentration.   
"Ow!" I say, covering my eye. Louis looks down at me.  
"What?"   
"Yer fuckin' dick just fuckin' gouged my eye out!"  
I hear him laugh, and glare up at him.   
"Ya coulda warned me," I grumble, blinking my eye open. It feels fine now, just a little watery.  
"I thought you had an idea of what you were doing," he laughs.  
"I didn't know ya had a weapon of mass destruction in yer pants!" I reply. This only makes him laugh harder. Obviously he finds this funny.  
After about five minutes of just watching him laugh, I speak up.  
"You want me ta blow ya 'r not?"

Niall's Point of View  
"She said she'd be back soon," Ann tells Ashley for about the fourth time. "That's all she told me."  
Ashley's sort of freaking out because 'they've got six minutes before the meeting part of the banquet starts, and Laura isn't here, and what are we going to do, she's supposed to say something, and I have to ask her something!' (Ashley's words, not mine).  
Ann turns back to me, rolling her eyes as Ashley goes back to her ranting to Rob.   
"So, do you like it so far?" she asks.  
I nod. "It's pretty nice. Everyone's really friendly."  
At least six or seven people have walked over to talk to Ann, mostly about her family and stuff, but all of them introduced themselves to me, and asked how I was doing, and what sort of things I do. I never once felt awkward or left out, always being part of the conversation.  
Ann leans her head on my shoulder. "That's good," she says as I wrap an arm around her, turning my head to the side to kiss the top of her head.   
"Love you," I murmur quietly, smiling when I hear her quiet, 'me too. But you."  
"Hey Annie?" Laura asks as she and Louis slide into their seats again, looking oddly giddy. "Does my eye look messed up? He ain't tellin' me the truth."  
"It's a little red," Ann replies truthfully. "What'd you do?"  
Laura doesn't answer, instead turning to glare at Louis.   
"What?" he asks innocently.   
"Don't you 'what' me," Laura says, a fake glare on her face. She turns back to Ann. "Jus' wanted ta know." I notice that her voice sounds a _tiny_ bit rougher than normal, and I look at Louis, raising an eyebrow.   
He grin in response, leaning over to murmur something in Laura's ear. She turns back to him, shoving at his shoulder with a smile.   
"Save it," she says.

Louis' Point of View  
"Get up, ya big shit," Laura says as she shoves at my shoulder for about the third time in a row.   
"Don't wanna," I groan. "Wanna sleep."  
I hear her huff, and I know without looking that she's crossing her arms and faking a pout.  
I sigh, then turn over, pulling the blanket from over my head, where I'd pulled it originally to protect myself from her tickle attack.  
Sure enough, she's got her arms crossed, a sort of pouty glare on her face, looking at me as if she isn't sure what else to do.   
"Can I help you?" I ask.  
"I dunno. You gonna get outta bed?" she sasses.  
"Laura, it's three in the morning." I don't even have to look at the clock to know what time it is, she told me when she first woke me up. "Don't you wanna just go back to sleep?"  
She shakes her head.   
"Can you not sleep?" I try.  
She shakes her head again. "Wanna go swimmin'."  
"Now?" She nods.   
I sigh, rolling onto my back. I am awake now, it's going to take a while to fall back asleep. If I do fall back asleep, that is. I look over at Laura.   
"Cuddle first, then go swimming," I say, holding my arms out for her. She grins, crawling over to me and snuggling into my chest as my arms close around her.   
"You smell good," she says quietly. I smile, reaching a hand up to run my fingers through her hair. She's left it down tonight.   
"Your hair is soft," I mutter.  
"It oughta be, I jus' washed it."  
"And you still wanna go swimming?"  
She looks up at me. "Yeah, iff'n it's with you."  
I smile at her. "Why do you have to be so cute?"  
"Cause yer here. It's all yer fault."  
She giggles afterward, and that makes me laugh with her.   
"I love you," I tell her. She smiles, her teeth gleaming white in the dark room.  
"Love you too, sugar."  
We lay there for a little bit longer, and I'm almost sure that Laura's asleep again, until she asks,   
"you wanna go now?"  
"Why don't you wanna sleep?" I ask. I'm all for swimming, but I didn't get a ton of sleep before she woke me up.   
"Cause I don't. Pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaase?" she asks, moving so that her face is right over mine, her hair falling around us.   
"I can't get up if you're on top of me," I answer with a smile. She grins in return, and then she's gone, quietly running out the door and across the loft floor, probably going back to her room to grab something. I pull back the sheet, swinging my legs over the side of my bed and reaching for my jeans, pulling them on once I grab them off the floor. After I've pulled on a shirt that I cut the sleeves off of, just because I know it gets Laura, I walk out of my room, quietly looking for Laura.   
It's kind of hard to see, mostly because it's the middle of the night, but I find my way to Laura's room, slowly pushing the door open.  
"Sunshine? You in here?" I ask quietly.  
I hear a soft growl behind me, and then hands cover my eyes. Not that I could see a whole lot anyway.   
"Guess who?" Laura asks.  
"The muffin man?" I answer. Laura responds with a drawn out 'noooo,' and muzzles into my neck.  
"Where in hell are yer sleeves?" she asks.  
"Sun's out, guns out," I reply, flexing my arms as her fingers trace over my biceps.   
"Hate ta break it to ya, but it's nighttime, sugar," she giggles.  
"But you're my sunshine," I say as I turn around, wrapping my arms around her.  
"You want some wine with that cheese?" she asks as she leans her forehead on mine.   
"I thought we were gonna go swimming."  
"Oh yeah. Race ya!"  
Then she's out the door and down the stairs, pulling her boots on before I'm even caught up to her.  
We dart out the door, running toward the paddock where our horses are, climbing the fence and racing over to them.   
It takes me a few tries, but I manage to climb onto Frodo's back without a saddle, hanging onto his mane to keep myself steady in his back.  
We're neck and neck as we gallop toward the far end of the pasture, where the creek swings around near the fence line.   
When we get there, Laura jumps down off of Rebel, dropping to the ground quickly to pull off her boots.  
I follow suit, pulling my boots and socks off before grabbing Laura's outstretched hand, pulling her with me as we run into the water, diving under once it's deep enough.  
When I come back up, I can't see Laura. But I'm not too worried, she's she's a good swimmer. She's probably waiting to try and scare me. Somewhere during the run to the water, she let go of my hand, and I lost track of her.   
After a few seconds, I feel hands on my back, and I turn around.   
But she's not there.   
I furrow my eyebrows, wondering where she went, and then her hands are on me again.   
This time when I turn around, I see her, just the top half of her head sticking out of the water.   
"What are you doing?" I ask. I see her eyes crinkle, the way they do when she smiles, and then I'm hit with a stream of water as she spits it out at me.   
"Laura!" I laugh, splashing her as she jumps up at me.  
She squeals, backing up and kicking her legs through the water, sending a wave of water at me. We keep splashing each other, until she jumps at me, taking both of us down under the water.   
I feel her mouth on mine as we come back up, then we're climbing out and onto the bank, and Laura's pulling me on top of her as she lays back onto the grass.   
She threads her fingers into my wet hair, hooking one of her legs around me. I put one hand on the ground to balance myself, and slide the other under her shoulders, lifting her top half off the ground.   
A soft moan makes its way out of her mouth as I lower myself onto her, gently pressing her into the grass underneath us.   
"Louis," she says quietly. Her teeth tug at my lip before her eyes flutter open for just a second. They're dark, almost black, as they look into mine.   
Then she shivers, and I'm reminded that we're outside, and soaking wet. Even though it's hot outside tonight, like it is pretty much every night, we could still get sick from this.  
"Louis," she says again, her voice becoming a whine at the end. She squirms underneath me, trying to get me to do something. "Please?"  
I shake my head, leaning down to kiss her again. When she tries to deepen the kiss, however, I pull away.   
"What's wrong?" she asks.   
"Not tonight," I answer. She tilts her head to one side.  
"Why not?" She looks like she might cry.  
"Because our first time should be in a bed," I tell her, leaning down to nuzzle into her neck. "Not on the ground." She deserves something better than this.   
"I don't mind," she says, sliding her hands up my back.   
"I do. We're gonna get sick."  
"Don't care. Want you." She bites at my shoulder.  
"You can have me. Just not right here."  
She pouts, pulling at my shirt with her teeth before saying, " 'f you say so."  
I smile, then sit up, pulling her with me. "It's nice out tonight."  
"It is," she replies, settling herself into my lap. "I like th' stars."  
I look up at the sky, my eyes following the patterns of stars that are above us.  
Laura leans her head on my shoulder, pointing up at the different constellations, telling me what her Nani has told her about them. We sit like that for a long time, until Laura's hair is dry and fluffy against my cheek as I lean my head on top of hers.   
"D'you think we oughta head back?" she asks. I shrug.   
"If you want."  
We walk back to the bunkhouse, Laura swinging our joined hands between us as we make our way to the steps, sitting in the porch swing.   
"Can I braid your hair?" I ask.   
She raises an eyebrow. "You ain't gonna tie it in knots, are ya?"  
I have to resist rolling my eyes. Just because I did it _one_ time...  
I shake my head. "Nope. Pinky promise," I tell her, holding out my pinky. She links her pinky with mine, then turns so that her back is facing me, shaking her hair out so that it's all behind her.   
I reach up, pulling her hair back, running my fingers through the strands until the tangles are gone. Then I split her hair into three parts, and begin twisting them together.   
"Your hair is really long," I murmur.  
"No shit," she giggles.   
"Is it hard to wash?"  
She starts to shake her head, until I tug on her hair to get her to hold still.  
" 's not too hard," she says quietly.   
We sit there like that for a while, the only sounds being the crickets chirping and a few neighs from the horses.   
"Done," I say as I let go of her hair, letting the braid lie over her shoulder.  
She glances at it.   
"That's pretty good," she compliments.  
"Thanks," I reply. "I knew having sisters would come in handy someday."  
I see her smile as she leans back against me.  
"You want kids?" she asks quietly, like she's not sure.  
I nod. "I've always wanted kids." I wrap my arms around her. "What about you?"   
I don't expect her to answer, so when she nods, I'm a little surprised.   
"Yeah, I think so," she softly replies. "But I want boys. Girls 're too much trouble."  
I laugh at her words. "I've always wanted boys too. Enough to have my own footie team," I admit.   
"A house full," she says. "That'd be fun."  
"It would," I agree, turning my arm over as Laura traces over my tattoos.  
"Don't it hurt, gettin' so many?" she asks.  
"It did at first, but I kind of got used to it after about the third one."  
"You gonna get more?"  
I shrug. "Maybe. What about you?" I ask, poking her where her skin is inked.  
"I dunno. That'n hurt. Maybe somethin' on my arm."  
We sit there and talk, watching as the sun comes up, until our stomachs start growling and we head inside to get breakfast ready.


	57. Chapter 57

Louis' Point of View

"Lulu!" Hanna says as she and Johnny run through the bunkhouse door. Laura jumps in her spot on my lap on the couch, her eyes snapping open.

"Lulu!" Johnny shouts, jumping onto the couch to hug Laura. It's a little weird though, because Laura's sitting in my lap, so Johnny ends up hugging both of us.

"Shoes. Couch," Laura mutters sleepily. Johnny sighs loudly, then kicks his small boots off, letting them fall to the floor as he climbs on top of Laura, snuggling into her hair.

"So what are we doing?" Hanna asks.

"I _was_ sleepin'," Laura says as she lays her head back on my shoulder, raising her hand to run through Johnny's hair.

"Okay. Sleep."

So we do. Somehow during the course of the morning, all four of us end up sprawled out on the couch, me on the bottom with the others piled on top of me. Laura's face is in my neck, her hair flung over both of our faces.

When I wake up, my right leg and left arm are asleep, both of them squashed under sleeping bodies. But it's alright, because Laura's still here, still asleep, and still warm against me.

Niall comes out of his room and walks down the stairs, stopping when he sees my predicament.

I try to lift my hand and wave, but Laura's arm tightens around me, and I can't move. I shrug, and Niall raises his eyebrows.

"Whipped," he says not so quietly, turning to go into the kitchen. I hear him open the fridge, and a few moments later he closes it, and soon I see him go back up to his room, apple in hand, shaking his head once he sees me.

"Louis?" I hear Hanna ask.

"What?" I answer, looking down at her. She's laying half on me, half on the back of the couch.

"Are you gonna wake Lulu up?"

"Not yet," I tell her.

"Why not?"

"Because she wanted to sleep, so I'm gonna let wake up when she's ready."

Just as I say it, Laura begins to move, her eyelashes fluttering against my neck as she makes a small noise.

"Morning sunshine," I say quietly.

"Hey sugar," she mumbles. "What time 's it?"

"Around noon," I answer.

"Gotta take a trailer ta th' stockyards," she says, though she makes no move to get up. "Oughta do that soon."

"Can we come, Lulu?" Johnny asks, crawling back up, his knee sinking into my stomach.

Laura nods. " 'Course. Go see iff'n th' others wanna go. Make sure ya knock 'fore ya go openin' doors."

The two kids jump off of the couch, running up the stairs and knocking on each of the lads' doors before running inside each one.

And after three of them send the kids back out, giggling like mad, Niall walks out of his room with them, pushing his hair back to put his hat on his head.

"Niall's gonna come with us!" Hanna squeals as she jumps back on top of us.

"Niall just wants to see Ann," I say.

"Your point? Not all of us live in the same house as our girlfriends," he replies.

"I'm just lucky," I say, pulling Laura closer. She yawns, letting out a loud squeaky sound right in my ear.

"Yeah, real lucky," Niall laughs as I make a face.

A few minutes later, we're in the truck, Hanna and Johnny in the back, Niall in between them, while Laura and I sit up in the front.

"Hey! That's my nose!" I hear Niall exclaim. "Laura, they're ganging up on me!"

"Don't mess with 'im," Laura calls back. "Don't want Annie gettin' after ya."

I hear the giggling immediately stop, and when I glance back, both of the kids are sitting straight up, hands in their laps.

"Are they scared of Ann or something?" Niall asks cautiously.

Laura shakes her head.

"When Annie get upset with us, she doesn't let us ride Cheesecake," Hanna says.

"Cheesecake?" I ask.

"That's her horse," Niall explains. "She let me ride him."

I can hear the smile in his voice, so I decide to one up him.

"Well, Laura let me ride Rebel."

"What?" It's not Niall that nearly shouts, it's Johnny. "Lulu!"

By the time we get to the stockyards and unload the cattle, it's lunchtime, and we stop at the diner, laughing when Niall runs in ahead of us. We eat lunch, and then Niall stays behind after Ann offers to drive him down to the Wilder's once she finishes her shift. She also mentioned something about how he could come meet the rest of her family. That made him look a little scared, which is something that was to be expected. Even I've heard the crazy stories about what Ann's father does when he meets her boyfriends.

They probably aren't true. People exaggerate those things all the time, don't they?

The rest of the day is spent making a pillow fort, and then coloring. (Did I mention that we dropped Hanna and Johnny off before we did that?) Then there was some napping, because both Laura and I were tired. Not quite sure why. At least that's what we told the rest of the lads. They didn't buy it, giving us knowing looks.

I guess we weren't as quiet as we thought when we ran down the stairs last night.

The teasing slows down once we pile into Laura's truck, the windows down as we cruise along the road.

When we get there, Niall looks a little shell shocked, but none worse for the wear. He even looks happier than before. It must have went well.

When Laura, Jeremy, and Kyle take their turn on the stage, each song they sing seems to be less and less PG rated.

When she looks me in the eye and says, 'I'll be your dirty girl," I nearly lose it right in my chair.

Then afterward, she has the nerve to pull me on to the dance floor, where it only gets worse.

The first couple songs are alright, but then another one starts, and she's pushing me back, into a chair, then moving away. She turns around with a smirk, staring at me as she starts to move, bouncing to the beat of the song. I shift a little in my seat, getting comfortable as I watch her.

_I'm like a kid at the candy shop I see what I want but the door is locked and you don't even know I'm lookin'._

_Over there hangin' with all your friends but you're gonna see me walkin' in, and this time you ain't gonna miss me._

_Cuz I'm comin', I'm comin' over, I'm gettin' closer, game over_

She looks up through her eyelashes at me, blinking slowly, and it's like the whole mood changes, the air becoming charged. It's like everything else blurs out except Laura as she dances for me.

_Sugar, you're gonna want it, (sugar) you're gonna need it_

_Wait 'til you see how good this is_

_(Sugar) you're gonna feel it, (sugar) you're gonna get it_

_Right there, smack dab on your lips_

_Sweet, little innocent tiny taste of peppermint, you're the one I want kind of kiss_

_I want, I want, I want sugar_

_From you_

Then she's back to bouncing to the beat, slowly turning in a circle, her arms above her head as her hips sway back and forth.

_Boy, I'm setting my sights on you_

_And you can bet by the time I'm through_

_You're not gonna know what hit ya_

She walks over to me slowly, running her hands through her hair, her wide hips still swaying side to side.

_Cuz I'm comin', I'm comin' over, I'm gettin' closer, game over_

_Sugar, you're gonna want it, (sugar) you're gonna need it_

_Wait 'til you see how good this is_

_(Sugar) you're gonna feel it, (sugar) you're gonna get it_

_Right there, smack dab on your lips._

"C'mon, _sugar_ ," she says, pulling me out of my chair and not stopping until we're in the middle of everyone. She fits herself right up against me, still swaying her hips as she threads her fingers into my hair, singing the words in my ear.

_Sweet, little innocent tiny taste of peppermint, you're the one I want kind of kiss_

_I want, I want, I want sugar, from you._

_That's right, sugar from you_

_You're gonna crave it, you can't resist it, you gotta have it, why'd ya taste it?_

My hands slide over her sides, coming to rest on her hips as we move together. I move so that my forehead is on her shoulder, watching her hips move.

She's so warm against me, moving just right...

_Sugar, you're gonna want it, (sugar) you're gonna need it_

_Wait 'til you see how good this is_

_(Sugar) you're gonna feel it, (sugar) you're gonna get it_

_Right there, smack dab on your lips_

She keeps muttering the words in my ear, and, if it's possible, she moves even closer, slotting her leg in between mine, every inch of her pressed up against me.

_Sweet, little innocent tiny taste of peppermint, you're the one I want kind of kiss_

_I want, I want, I want sugar_

_I want, I want, I want sugar_

_From you_

"This might not be a good idea," I mutter.

"Why not?" she asks innocently, like she can't feel me pressed up against her.

"Because," I groan, pulling her back when she starts to move away. "Don't _leave_!"

" 's it that obvious?" she asks, looking down for a second before giggling. "Oops."


	58. Chapter 58

Laura's Point of View

"Can you what?"

"Can I wear your shirt?" Louis asks again. "Like, cause it has your name on it, and... yeah."

Well, Rafe did say that we weren't wearing them at the tournament today...

"I guess. 's it gonna fit?" I ask, tossing it over to him. He holds up the black shirt, the side with my number on it facing me.

"It might be a little tight, but I think it'll fit alright."

"Jus' don't rip it," I warn as he tugs it over his head. It does fit, probably because I got a size bigger than I usually do. I don't like having my shirts stick to me when I'm in a game. It gets all sticky and that's never fun.

He looks at me, seeking approval. I nod with a smile.

"Fits you better'n it fits me," I say as I tug on the collar. He shrugs with a smile.

"Are you coming?" Erica shouts from downstairs.

"No! We're staying in bed!" Louis yells back. My eyes widen as I look at him. He puts finger to his lips, pulling my hair out of it's ponytail.

"Laura!"

I hear Erica's feet on the loft floor, and ruffle Louis' hair before pushing him out the door.

"Hey!" he laughs, stumbling a little.

We make it to the high school without any more delays - even though Erica insisted that we stop at McDonalds (I wasn't going to, but then she gave Liam the look and he did that thing with his eyes, and I couldn't say _no_ ) - and soon we're on the bus to the tournament, which isn't very far away, just around half an hour. But this is the last tournament of the regular season, so we're all very excited. Even Georgia and Vanessa are laughing along with us as we listen to Harry tell one of his long, drawn out jokes.

I feel Louis wrap his arms around me from where he's sitting on the other side of me in the bus seat, and pull me toward him.

"Look," he says, pointing out the window. I follow his finger, and see a family of deer running along the side of the road next to the bus.

"Aw!" I coo, watching as the faun stumbles a little before it catches up to it's mother. They turn, and I lose them in the bushes.

Louis' Point of View

"Hey Laura, we gotta go get warmed up," Camryn says, taking Laura's attention away from me.

"A'right. 'll be there inna minute," she replies, turning back to me as Camryn walks away. " 'M s'posed ta leave now."

I nod. "Uh huh." I don't unwrap my arms from around her, and she makes no move to leave.

"I don't wanna go though." She leans her forehead against mine, and we share a smile.

"I'll be up in the stands, watching you the whole time," I say.

She nods. "A'right. That's good."

Suddenly Erica runs into the cafeteria, looking through her bag for something. When she pulls out a small red jar, she looks at Laura.

"Almost forgot the paint," she says with a smile, "you should get out there, Rafe's starting to get worried."

Laura nods, and Erica jogs back out to the gym.

"A'righty, I oughta get out there." This time she really starts to pull away, but I pull her right back, sealing my lips over hers. I feel her smile and begin to run her fingers through my hair. When we break apart, we're both out of breath.

"Good luck," I say quietly.

"Thanks." She smiles, then steps back. "You comin'?" she asks.

"I'll be out there in a minute. I think I'm gonna go get something to drink."

She nods, then turns to walk away again.

"Just kidding," I say, grabbing her arm and pulling her back to me so I can kiss her again.

"I love you," she says, and I feel my heart skip a few beats. The way she says it without hesitation makes me smile.

"I love you too."

She grins back.

"I really gotta go this time," she says.

"Alright," I say, spinning her around so she's facing away from me. In a sudden rush of courage, my hand slaps against her ass, making her jump a little.

"Go get 'em, tiger," I growl in her ear.

She turns back to look at me as she walks away, grabbing her Gatorade off of the table with a shake of her head and a grin.

When I get out to the stands to sit with the other lads and some of the other girls' boyfriends, the girls are lined up on the sidelines, ready for the introductions. Laura is on the opposite end of the team from me, so I can't really see her, but I can tell when she finds me.

"For the Lady Warriors, number two, Vanessa Rose!"

As the now familiar intros continue, I study the 'war paint' the girls have put on. Vanessa has two lines on either side of her nose, which looks almost like whiskers.

Erica has rings around her arms, and one line on the left side of her face.

Georgia doesn't have any paint, Laura said it's because she doesn't want her face to break out.

Sam has two lines on her right cheek.

Camryn and Zoe both have the same thing - of course - A handprint on the left side of their faces.

"And captain, number thirteen, Laura Johnson!"

As Laura steps out and waves, I feel my eyes go wide.

Instead of just painting her face, she's gone all out. Her arms, legs, and face are decorated in red tiger stripes. She waves to the crowd, then her eyes meet mine, and she winks before stepping back into the line. I feel my teeth sink into my lip.

"Damn, she's good," I mutter.

About halfway through the second game, the team goes in for a huddle, and it almost looks like Laura and Camryn have an argument. But Laura agrees to whatever she says, and then they go back onto the court.

When that game ends, Laura jogs over to the bleachers, climbing up them until she's standing in front of me.

"Hey," I say.

"Hey. Take my shirt off," she tells me.

"Right here?" I ask, taking her hands in mine. "There's other people besides you and me, sunshine."

"No, like. I need my shirt." She tugs at the shirt I'm wearing. "We're s'posed ta wear 'em fer th' next game."

"Oh. Okay." She tugs on my hand again, pulling me to my feet. "Where are we going?"

"Under th' bleachers. We can switch shirts," she tells me. I follow her, not quite hearing the lads yelling at me to 'get some!'

She tugs at my hand until we're both underneath the bleachers, where no one can see us.

"I ain't got all day," she says when I stop to look around a little. There's a lot of garbage under here. And it's dusty.

"Sorry," I say automatically, grabbing the collar of the shirt and pulling it over my head. I toss it at her, then stand there, waiting for her. "I thought you said you didn't have all day," I say with a laugh when she doesn't really react.

"I don't," she says, her cheeks turning a bit pinker. "Yer jus' distractin'."

She reaches for the hem of her uniform, and I furrow my eyebrows.

"You don't cross your arms when you take your shirt off?" I ask. She shakes her head.

"Am I s'posed to?" I shrug.

"I thought all girls did it."

"Lemme try," she says, crossing her arms over her stomach, a look of concentration on her face. She grabs the bottom of her shirt, and pulls it up, letting me see her tanned stomach. She looks so hot right now.

And then she gets it stuck on her head.

After laughing a little, I step over to help her, and then watch as she pulls her other shirt over her head.

"Thanks sugar," she says, leaning over to kiss my cheek. I turn my head, catching her lips with mine at the last second.

That kiss leads to another, and soon we're snogging under the bleachers, Laura's legs wrapped around me as I press her back into the wall. I feel the fabric of her uniform brush across my back as she wraps her arms around my neck, tilting her head to the side.

"Laura Lynn!" A loud voice shouts, Laura quickly turns her head to the side, looking for the source.

"Sam!" she scolds. "Don't do that!"

"Well, we're supposed to be warming up. We've only got five minutes," Sam explains, her curly ponytail bouncing around as she moves her head expressively.

Laura rolls her eyes, not making any sort of move to get down. "Are ya gonna wait till I come with ya?" she asks.

Sam nods, and Laura rolls her eyes again.

"One for th' road then."

Then her mouth is back on mine, warm and soft. Not as urgent and sloppy as before, but I don't mind.

She runs her fingers through my hair one more time, then she pulls back.

"Gotta go now, sugar," she says quietly. "Should prob'ly put me down."

"Yes ma'am," I say, setting her back down on the wooden floor. "Go tear it up, sunshine."

She smiles as she turns and walks away, Sam going with her.

I smile as I pull her uniform over my head. Today's going to be fun.

It is fun. After nearly every match - all of which they win - Laura and I end up either in one of the bathrooms, or sitting on the bench and laughing with the others, Laura in my lap. And when we go home, the fun doesn't stop. Almost immediately after we step out of the truck, Yankee comes running up to Laura, covered in mud, and tackles her, both of them falling into the mud that's in the driveway.

"Hey!" Laura laughs, shoving the big dog off of her with a laugh. He barks happily, running over to Liam next, almost taking him down as well. She stands, now covered in mud, and I can't help the laugh that bubbles out of me.

"You think this 's funny?" she asks, her eyebrow raised. I can barely start to shake my head before I've got an armful of Laura, and then we're going down, splashing into the mud.

We mess around outside for a while, and then trudge inside, heading to the bathrooms to wash the mud off.

When I've finished, I put on some clean clothes, sitting down on the couch and waiting for Laura. I told her I'd go with her to get some things from the store.

Laura walks out of her room, still wearing those shorts, but this time with a hoodie instead of her uniform shirt.

"Ya ready?" she asks. I nod, and we walk out to the truck, then make the long (But not boring) drive into town, pulling into the WalMart lot.

We walk into the store, the air conditioning giving me chills in the sudden contrast to the heat outside. Laura grabs a cart, and I follow as she pushes it through the store, down the various aisles.

"It feels like we're an old married couple," I mutter. "Going shopping together."

"Is that a problem?" she asks, pulling a box of cereal down off of the shelf in front of her. "D'ya want Cheerios or Fruit Loops?"

"Fruit Loops. And no, not really, but that's what I thought of," I answer as she sets the box in the cart.

We go through most of the store like that, just talking and laughing at some of the names of things on the shelves. People look at us like we're crazy, and they're probably right, but we don't really care.

Then we turn down the aisle with all the ice cream, because Laura said that we were almost out, and are met with a wall of people. All guys.

"Hey, can y'move, please?" Laura asks politely. They turn and look at her, staring for a few seconds longer than is really necessary, then move out of our way.

Laura, being Laura, just keeps walking, throwing a 'thank you' over her shoulder as they continue to stare at her.

"D'ya think cookie dough or that brownie kind would be better?" she asks as she stops by the freezer with both of them in it, not noticing the eyes that follow her.

"I don't know," I answer, moving to stand behind her as she looks over the different choices. "You pick."

"I don't wanna," she replies, pressing back into me as I wrap my arms around her. I glance over at the guys that are standing there, smirking when I see them glaring at me.

"Then get both," I suggest. She shrugs.

"A'right." She almost moves away before bending down to reach into the freezer, still pressing back into me.

"Or..." I start, reaching over her, pulling her hips back into mine, smirking when she gasps quietly, "we could get superman."

"Superman's good," she replies. I grab it off of the shelf, then stand up, setting it in the cart. Laura sets the other two tubs in the cart, then pushes the cart forward again, this time headed toward the checkout lanes.

She doesn't say anything until we get outside, all the groceries begged and in the cart.

"So, you gonna tell me what that was?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," I say, playing dumb.

"Ya do too," she says, nudging me with her shoulder. "Was somebody _jealous_?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," I repeat.

"You sure?" she asks. "Cause it was kinda hot."

"Really?"

"Yeah. You wanna drive?" What?

"Sure."

"Good." She tosses me the keys, then moves over to the passenger side. "I'll put th' stuff in th' back."


	59. Chapter 59

Louis' Point of View

By the time she climbs into the truck, I've gotten it started, and I'm just beginning to get over the adrenaline rush that comes with hearing the low growl of the engine start up.

Laura slides right over to the middle seat, her hair tickling my shoulder.

"You cold?" she asks, poking my arm, where the hair is standing straight up.

I shake my head, moving my hand to the gear shift, furrowing my eyebrows in the bright sun that filters through the windshield.

But before I can shift into drive, I've got a lapful of Laura.

"This mighta been a bad idea," she mutters, mouthing at my neck.

"What?"

"Lettin' you drive." Her fingers begin pulling at the button on my jeans, and she presses her lips to mine. Oh.

"There's people here, sunshine," I gasp when she slides her hand into my boxers.

"You'll be fine," she says, sliding down until she's sitting on the floor of the cab in front of me. Oh God, thank you so much.

"Okay, whatever you say," I answer, watching as she tugs me out of my pants. She moves backward, and her head bumps against the steering wheel.

"Can you move that?" she asks, looking up at me.

"It moves?"

She rolls her eyes, then reaches up, pushing at a small lever on the side of the steering column before shoving the steering wheel up so that it's out of her way.

I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear, then slide my fingers into her hair, something she liked last time she did this. She smiles up at me, blinks, and then -

"Good God, Laura."

She sucks at the head, her tongue sliding over the slit, and I lean my head back against the headrest.

"God, I love you."

She hums, and sets her hands on my thighs before starting to bob her head, slowly going farther and farther down, taking in more and more of me.

"Feels so good..." I moan. My hips jerk forward when I feel my tip hit the back of her throat, and she pulls back a little, coughing.

"Easy, tiger," she says, her eyes a little watery.

"Sorry."

She licks around the head, and then starts going down again. I feel her gag a little when she reaches the point where my cock's against the back of her throat, and I tug her head back.

"Don't choke yourself," I tell her. She slaps my hand back as a response, stubbornly going farther down, until I can feel her nose against my stomach, and her throat is constricting around my cock.

I try to take deep breaths, try to hold off from coming, but it just feels _so_ good.

"Laura," I start to warn her. She blinks, looking up at me through her eyelashes, and just the look in her blown out eyes is enough to send me over the edge.

When I can think straight again, I can feel her tongue on me.

"What're you doing?" I say, my words a little slurred.

"Cleanin' up," she answers simply. She licks one long stripe up the underside, then crawls back up to sit in my lap, one leg on either side of me.

"Did you know... that you're really good at that?" I ask breathlessly as I tuck myself back in and zip up my jeans.

"Really?" she asks. I nod, and she looks down, a shy smile on her face.

I reach over, cupping her face in my hands, and pull her mouth to mine.

She sighs, tilting her head to one side as her hands slide over my shoulders.

"Love you," she says quietly her lips brushing against mine.

"Love you too," I reply, sliding my knuckle over her cheek.

"We oughta get home," she mutters.

"It can wait," I answer, kissing her again.

She doesn't protest, moving closer to me as I slide my hand down her back, stopping when I reach the dip right above her butt.

I hear voices outside the truck, and out of the corner of my eye I see the guys that were staring at Laura.

"We oughta go home," she says again, a little more conviction behind her words this time.

"Alright," I agree, letting her slide off my lap and into the middle seat.

We drive home, only enduring a little teasing from the lads at how long it took us to get back home, and soon we're all going to bed.

"Can I sleep with you?" Laura asks, standing in my doorway.

"Sure," I tell her, pulling the sheets back. She crawls in next to me, laying half on top of me before closing her eyes.

Laura's Point of View

"Lomasi."

The short call pulls my attention to her again. She looks the same as she always does. Long, dark hair. Dark eyes, and that same necklace.

"You again?"

"Come with me," she says, her tone not giving any room for argument.

I stand, taking ahold of her outstretched hand, and she pulls me up behind her on her horse.

"Hang on," she tells me, and suddenly we're galloping so fast that I feel a little sick.

I see some of my own memories fly past us - Jeremy, Kyle and I when we entered the wild horse race at last year's rodeo, Wyatt laughing as he cleaned up the spilled ice cream from the backseat of his truck, Hanna learning to walk, toddling toward Kyle, Johnny with his two front teeth missing as he holds up the first fish he ever caught, Paul's sweet smile as he sang Simple Man while we sat on the hood of his truck, Luke grinning at me when we were crowned prom king and queen, throwing rocks at Alan's window while he and his new girlfriend sat inside and I cried, Kyle smiling at me when I showed him what my dress looked like for Easter when I was sixteen, fishing in the dark with the Schmidts, Daddy watching as I ran the barrels for the first time at fourteen, catching fireflies with Ann and Ashley and Rob after we won at districts, Daddy teaching me how to ride, riding behind Uncle Jack as we drove around on the four wheeler, that awful pink dress Daddy made me wear every Christmas when we went to Nani's until it didn't fit anymore - just glimpses, but enough to make me wonder what's going on.

Then, just as suddenly as we started, we've stopped.

This time, we're in the main house, but it looks different than how I know it. Everything seems taller. Or I'm smaller.

"Lynn, where are you?" I hear a man's voice call. I see Daddy come around the corner of the kitchen, and I reach out for him, my arms tiny and chubby. "Hey you," he says once he sees me. "Where's yer mama?"

He walks over and picks me up, something he hasn't been able to do for at least eight or nine years. Yet he does so easily, as if I weigh nothing at all.

I try to tell him that I don't know, I've never known, but all that comes out is a string of gurgles and some spit.

"Well, we'll have ta go find 'er then, I reckon," he says, speaking to me as if I'd just said something that made perfect sense.

"Eugene, have you seen my -"

"There you are."

I turn my head - which suddenly seems extremely heavy - and see her standing there. She looks younger, fewer wrinkles surround her eyes, and her eyes seem brighter yet.

She walks over to Daddy, kissing him on the cheek.

"What did you want?" she asks.

"I was wonderin' where ya were," he answers, looking at her with nothing but pure love in his eyes.

They stand like that for a moment, until I see my chubby hand move toward her, waving to get her attention.

"You want Mama?" Daddy asks, looking at me with a smile. I make some sort of noise, waving both my hands, leaning toward her. Suddenly I'm being set on the floor, and both of them are crouching down. "Yer gonna have ta walk over there."

"Darling," the woman - _Mama_ \- says.

"She's gotta learn sometime," Daddy insists, holding my hands as my feet touch the floor.

I move one stout leg forward, then swing it back, stomping my foot on the floor.

"Come on Laura," she says, stretching out her arms, "walk to Mama."

I feel my tongue stick out of my mouth, and I move my other pudgy leg, this time succeeding in taking one step forward.

"That's it," Daddy says, taking a small step forward behind me, still holding on to my hands.

I move my legs, one by one, until I've crossed the small gap between them, and Mama picks me up.

"Good job, Lomasi!" she exclaims, holding me up above her head as she smiles at me. I wave my hands excitedly, kicking my legs and screaming happily until she lowers me back down, kissing the top of my head.

"We oughta get started on supper," Daddy tells her.

"Alright," she answers. She sets me down on the carpet floor in the living room. "You stay right here, you hear me?"

I clap my hands together, laughing when she pokes my nose with her finger.

Then they're both walking out of the room and into the kitchen, which is just through the open doorway. If I move forward just a little bit, I can see them.

A loud yipping sound comes from outside, and I turn my head to look out the window. I can't see anything, but it sounds like there are dogs outside.

I like dogs.

I scoot across the floor, toward the door that will take me outside to see the dogs. It's a good thing Daddy and Mama leave the door open in the summertime, because I'm pretty sure I can't open it when I'm this small.

I crawl out onto the porch, and then I see the dogs, and start to crawl precariously down the steps, and over toward them. They don't look like Yankee - come to think of it, they don't look like actual dogs. They look like -

"Laura!"

I don't stop when I hear Mama scream, or when Daddy starts yelling something. I want to pet the dogs. One of them looks at me, and then they're trotting over to me, their tongues lolling out.

Then I'm in the air again, and Mama's holding on to me. The dogs start growling, and one of them snaps at Mama.

Another jumps, trying to bite me, and the rest start yipping and howling and growling and snapping their shiny white teeth.

Suddenly I'm crying, screaming, as everything goes black.

Louis' Point of View

Screaming wakes me up. Loud, terrified screaming. I'm hit in the stomach as Laura thrashes around, and I grip her shoulder, shaking it lightly.

"Laura, wake up."

When she continues kicking and screaming, I roll on top of her, getting a fist to the face as a result.

"Laura, wake up!"

Her eyes snap open, wide and unblinking.

"Louis?"

"Right here, sunshine," I tell her, rolling so I can wrap my arms around her. "What happened?"

"Mama," she answers. "I saw Mama."

"What?"

"I saw my Mama," she repeats, looking at me like _I'm_ the one that just woke up and isn't quite fully functioning.

"What else?"

She yawns widely, then snuggles into my chest.

"I walked, an' she was happy about it. Then they went ta make supper, an' I wandered outside. There were dogs..."

I furrow my eyebrows. "Dogs?"

"I thought they was dogs," she says, sounding a little confused. "But there was that horse."

"Horse?"

" 'M goin' ta Uncle Jack's tamarra," she says determinedly. "Gonna ask 'im."

"A'right," I say, trying to figure out what she's talking about. "You do that, sunshine."

Laura's Point of View

The next morning, I drive over to Uncle Jack's after breakfast. Louis wanted to come with me, but I told him that he had to stay back and help with the cattle.

I walk in, sitting down on the couch across from him. He looks up from his book, smiling once he sees me.

"Lomasi! What're you doin' here?"

"What happened to Mama?" I ask, getting right to the point. I've always been that way with him.

His smile fades, and he looks down with a sigh.

"Your daddy don't like people to know, even if it weren't nothing bad. He just blames himself for it, I think that's what it is," Uncle Jack says.

"Well, what happened?" I ask. He takes a deep breath, seeming at war with himself on whether or not he should tell me.

"Yer prolly gonna find out anyway, might as well be from me." He pauses, then continues. "You were just learnin' ta walk, hadn't quite gotten the hang of it. It was nighttime, so yer folks went inta the kitchen ta make supper fer ya when ya. But when yer ma came back in ta check on ya, you was gone."

"Gone? Whaddya mean?"

"You'd gotten outside somehow. An' it was summer, so the coyotes'd been comin' 'round. They musta smelled somethin', cause they wandered inta the yard, where you was. By the time yer ma got out there, the varmints was closin' in on ya. Yer daddy went ta go get the gun, tellin' yer ma ta stay put. But she didn't listen. Sound familiar?"

I nod. I've done that plenty of times.

"When he got back, yer ma had picked you up, an' was lookin' fer a way ta get ya back inside. But... there wasn't one."

"Then... how am I...?" I ask, confused. Uncle Jack sniffles a bit, his eyes tearing up.

"Yer ma curled up in a ball on the ground, put you in the middle, an' kept you from gettin' hurt, takin' the hits fer ya. Yer daddy ran over, tryin' ta fight 'em off, but by the time they run off, it was too late. He took ya both to the hospital, but yer ma didn't make it through the night."

"What?" No. This can't be what really happened. No, no, no, no. That was just a dream.

Uncle Jack just nods, wiping his eyes with his sleeve.

"Well, what happened after that?" Now I'm curious.

"Well, yer daddy took ya back home and... you grew up."

"But why don't 'e got no pictures 'r nothin' of mama?"

"Too many memories. He couldn't - still can't - handle all of 'em. That's why he turned Jynx loose after awhile."

"Jynx?" I ask. I've never heard the name before.

"Yer ma's horse. Big ol' black thing, he was."

"Where?" I have to go see this horse.

"At the far north end of the range. Why?"

"I'm gonna go fer a 'lil ride," I tell him, getting up and walking toward the door.

"Laura..." he warns.

"Thanks Uncle Jack. Sorry iff'n I made ya sad, but thank ya fer tellin' me."

"Be careful." He hugs me, and he smells the same as Mama did in my dreams. 

"I will, thanks." I walk out the door, and climb into my truck, pulling out my phone as I start it up.

"Hey sunshine," Louis says from the other end of the line. "What's up?"

"You wanna go fer a ride?"


	60. Chapter 60

Louis' Point of View

"How long have the dreams been happening?" I ask.

"We're stayin' _one_ night, sugar," she tells me, pulling the second pair of jeans out of my bag. "They've been happenin' fer 'bout a month 'r so."

"Why haven't you said anything before?"

"I didn't think it was important."

Of course she didn't. It's just a recurring dream about her mother. No big deal.

"How far are we going?"

"Big cabin at th' end of th' range," she says. "Then we're goin' inta th' woods."

When Laura says I've got enough stuff for one night, she grabs her bag, which seems to have even less in it than mine, and we head out to the stables.

"So you're going on a road trip?" Harry asks as we walk past him.

"I guess?" I answer, shrugging.

"Can ya get Penny out?" Laura asks, walking into Rebel's stall with her saddle.

Harry looks at me and shrugs, then goes to halter the pony.

I drop my bag outside Frodo's stall, then grab my saddle from the tack room.

Once we're all saddled up, we load the extra bags onto Penny, along with a tent Laura says we probably won't need, and enough food for a couple meals.

"Should be back sometime tammara. Don't mess up my kitchen again," Laura tells the other lads.

"Yes ma'am," they answer, Yankee barking his answer. We'd decided to leave him at the ranch with the lads.

"Good. See ya tamarra then." She turns Rebel toward the fields, nudging him into a trot, Penny bouncing along behind them.

"Don't you have too much fun," Liam tells me. I roll my eyes, knowing exactly what he's hinting at.

"I can assure you, we are both consenting adults, and I am well prepared," I tell him, referring to the handful of condoms I'd thrown into my bag when Laura finally gave me a moment to myself.

"They're gonna have sex," Niall tells Harry. "I'll bet my next paycheck on it."

"That's not why we're leaving..." I try to tell them. It really isn't. I'm just being prepared, because you never know what might happen. Isn't that like, the Boy Scout thing? Always prepared?

"Yeah, yeah. Sure it isn't," Harry jokes. "Gotta 'close up the cabins' for the season or whatever. I'm not buying it."

That's what we'd told Mr. Johnson we'd be doing. I'm pretty sure he bought it. We couldn't exactly tell him that we're going to go look for a ghost horse or anything. He'd think we were crazy.

I haven't even seen it before, I'm just going with what Laura's said.

"Louis!" I hear Laura yell.

"Coming!" I call back. When I look at the lads again, they're laughing. "What?"

"So whipped," Niall laughs. I roll my eyes again.

"Whatever," I reply, fighting back a smile. "I'll see you lot tomorrow."

And with that, I turn Frodo toward where Laura's waiting, and nudge him with my heels.

"Have fun!" I hear Harry yell after me, just before they all burst into another round of snickering.

I don't look back, choosing to focus on Laura.

When I catch up with her, she turns Rebel toward the horizon, and soon the buildings of the ranch are fading away, getting smaller and smaller as we get farther and farther away.

We ride at a fast pace for most of the day, until we reach the far end of the range, as Laura calls it, and after putting Penny into the small fenced in area and letting the horses drink some water, we're off again, this time headed toward the woods.

It isn't long until I hear another set of hoofbeats, and once Laura turns her head, I know she's heard it too. When she turns left, weaving through the trees, I see the black horse she's told me about.

It leads us through the woods, until we come to a circle of very old looking trees.

Rebel stops in front of me so fast that I nearly topple off of Frodo's back when he stops to avoid hitting the other horse.

"Think this 's it," Laura says, swinging her leg over her horse's broad back and hopping down onto the ground.

I climb down too, and take Rebel's reins as she holds them out to me.

"Do you want me to go with you?" I ask.

She shakes her head slowly. "No, you prob'ly oughta stay here," she says quietly.

"Okay. Be careful."

She nods, and I watch as she walks to the opening in the line of trees, then looks back at me. I nod, silently telling her that I'll be right here if anything happens.

She gives me a small smile, then pushes the branches out of her way and walks into the circle.

I'm in a spot where I can see her, just in case. And I'm curious as to what's going to happen. I want to see what she's going to do.

She walks to the middle, then stands there, looking around as if she's not sure what to do.

She sits cross legged on the grass, her hands folded in her lap. She takes a deep breath, then starts to sing.

I can't understand the words, but I can tell it's Cherokee. I can feel a pull, something tugging on me, but I don't want to walk over to her. I might mess something up.

Laura's Point of View

I sit on the ground, singing an old song that Nani sings when she has to talk to the spirits. I don't know if this will work, but it's the only thing I can think of.

I feel something walking up behind me, but keep still, not wanting to mess up the atmosphere. I hear a nicker from behind me, and slowly turn around.

My eyes widen when I see the huge black horse standing behind me. It's just like the horse from my dreams. A perfect diamond on his forehead, feathery hooves, and a cross shaped mark on his right flank.

I stand, still singing the song quietly, and the horse nuzzles his nose into my stomach.

"o si yo," (Hello) I say quietly. The horse snorts, moving up to rub his nose on my face. "hatlvno unitsi?" (where's Mama?) I ask.

The horse nickers again, and lowers his face, pressing his forehead against mine. As soon as my skin touches the diamond shaped marking, I hear a voice.

"o si yo Lomasi." It's the same voice that I hear in my dreams. When she talks to me.

"Mama?"

"ayv uha ugatidvgi nasginai nihi," (I have waited for you) she replies. "naquu nihi uha awadvdi a'ya." (Now you have found me)

"hatlvno nihi?" (Where are you?" I ask. The horse nuzzles at my necklace.

"ahani. ayv gvdodi nihi." (Here. I am with you.)

"hilago?" (How?)

"Jynx. ayv dikanelv nasgiasigaya. nahnaqueninagi atsvyai egoi, ayv anagisdi," (Jynx. I am tied to him. Wherever he goes, I go.) she answers. "vtlanasgiyinusdidana naquu." (But that is not the case anymore.)

Before I can question what she means, she continues.

"ayv igadv nihi naquu." (I am part of you now.) "ayv nigohlvi gvdodi nihi." (I am always with you.)

The horse backs away, confusing me. Didn't she just say she was always with me? Shouldn't she want to stay with me?

Before I can say or do anything, the huge horse rears up, and then I blink, and he's gone. But I don't feel like I've been left behind. The hole of complete numbness that usually comes with thinking about what could have happened to Mama isn't there. I feel almost peaceful, happier even. Like something that was missing is finally in it's place. Like I'm whole again.

Harry's Point of View

"No you stay out of here," I tell the other lads. "If there's less of us in here, we won't make as big of a mess."

"But if we all help, we get to eat sooner," Niall counters.

"But then we'll make a bigger mess, and Laura said not to do that," Liam says.

"I'll help clean up. I just want something to eat. It's been _four hours_!" Niall groans.

"Just sit at the table. We'll call you when it's ready," I tell him. He groans, but makes his way over to the table, Zayn following him.

"So what are we going to make?" Liam asks.

"I honestly have no idea," I answer, looking through the cupboards.They _just_ went grocery shopping, there should be tons of food for us to eat.

Louis' Point of View

We get almost all the way back to the cabin before it starts raining.

"Come on!" Laura laughs, nudging Rebel to go faster. I follow, feeling the warm raindrops soak through my shirt as we ride along. Laura keeps laughing, and once the rain is thick enough that I can't quite see her clearly, I follow the sound until I can make out the shape of the cabin through the downpour.

"Put th' horses in th' pen, I'll take yer saddle inside," she tells me as we stop in front of the gate to the small pen. I pull my saddle off of Frodo, letting Laura take it as she hands Rebel's reins to me.

As she carries the saddles inside, I lead the horses into the pen with Penny, pulling the bridles off before closing the gate and going inside, hanging the bridles on a hook inside the door.

Harry's Point of View

"So, we've got pancakes, and waffles, and some bacon," Liam says as we carry the plates full of food to the table.

"Ohh! Burnt bacon!" Niall exclaims, reaching for the plate. "My favorite!"

"So what do you think they're doing now?" Liam asks as we sit down.

"Probably fucking," Niall says with a laugh.

"Probably," I agree. I'm surprised they haven't already. Or if they have, they've been really good at keeping it a secret.

"I'll bet money on it," Niall says. "Louis won't shut up about her. They're doing it, no question."

"I think they might be sleeping," Zayn says quietly. "Laura likes to sleep when it rains."

"She does," Liam says.

Louis' Point of View

I close the door, shaking some of the water from my hair before I look around for Laura.

"There ya are," she says as she sets her phone on the table. She stands from her spot on the bed, and my jaw drops.

No pants, my shirt, bare feet, her hair up in a very messy ponytail. Her legs look endless in the flickering light of the fire.

"Borrowed yer shirt, mine was a 'lil wet," she says with a grin, looking over at me.

"That's... that's fine," I say quietly, not quite able to get the words out.

"Oughta get you outta them wet clothes," she murmurs. "Ya might get sick."

I'm still frozen in the doorway, staring at her as she walks over to me, her bare feet quiet on the wooden floor. Is she wearing a bra?

"You a'right?" she asks. I blink, shaking my head, trying to clear my head.

"Yeah... fine..." I answer, my voice quiet.

"You sure?" She stops in front of me, looking up at me through her eyelashes.

I nod absently, tugging at the collar of my shirt as I stare at her.

"You gonna do somethin'?" Laura asks,tilting her head to the side.

I nod again, then reach up, holding her face in my hands. She blinks slowly, sighing happily before she closes her eyes completely.

I slide my hand behind her head, pulling the tie from her hair, letting it fall loosely around her shoulders.

"You look really pretty like this," I tell her.

She smiles softly. "Thank you."

A chill runs through me, and I shiver a little, catching Laura's attention.

"Yer gonna get sick, c'mere." She pulls me over toward the small fireplace, where's she's lit a fire. "Take yer clothes off, they're all wet." Oh. Alright then.

"If you say so," I reply, tugging my shirt over my head. She holds out her hand for the soaked fabric, and after I hand it to her, she turns, hanging it over the back of a chair by the fire.

I reach for the button on my jeans, then hesitate.

"Pants too?" I ask, just to make sure.

She nods. "Pants too. They're soaked, c'mon."

I feel her eyes on me as I undo them, then pull my jeans down my legs, kicking my boots off.

"What about these?" I ask, lightly tugging at the waistband of my boxers.

"Are they wet?"

"A little."

She blinks slowly. "Probably oughta get dry ones then."

She walks over to where my bag is, reaching inside to dig around a little. I wonder what she'll say when she figures out I didn't -

"Y'ain't got any extras?"

"No."

She looks at me.

"Y'don't change yer underwear ev'ry day?"

"You told me not to bring a lot of extra stuff -"

"Ew! I didn't mean-" she cuts herself off. "I'll get ya a blanket, hang on."

She walks over to the bed, grabbing her red and blue blanket, holding it up between her and me.

"Get naked," she says, looking the other way.

I roll my eyes, quietly smiling as I pull my boxers off, sliding my socks off too.

"Okay," I tell her. "I'm done."

She throws the blanket at me, still looking the other way. I wrap it around my shoulders, thankful for the warmth it gives me.

"You can look now," I say quietly.

She slowly turns back, then steps over to me, wrapping her arms around me. She leans her head on my shoulder, and I set my chin on top of her head.

"Love you," she says.

"Love you too," I tell her.

"Whaddya wanna do?" she asks.

You. "Whatever you want," I answer, yawning.

"How about sleep?"

I nod. "Okay."

We shuffle over to the bed a little awkwardly, mostly because Laura wouldn't let me go, and fall in after Laura trips on my foot, me landing on top of her.

"Sorry," she giggles, her hair all over, but mostly in her face.

"It's alright," I laugh, trying to get my arms out of the blanket.

"What're you doin'?" she asks, squeezing her arms tighter around me. "Hold still."

"Yes ma'am," I answer, tucking my face into her neck.

"No, silly!" She pulls back.

"What?"

"Yer beard is tickly!"

"Oopsie!" I laugh, rubbing my face on her skin. She laughs, trying to move away.

"Louis!"

She starts squirming underneath me, snorting because she's laughing so hard.

I stick my tongue out, licking her ear, and she squeals, kicking her feet out.

"Easy, don't hurt yourself," I laugh.

"Then stop it!" she giggles.

"If you say so," I give in, kissing her cheek.

She giggles again, turning to press her lips against mine.

Her hands move to cradle my face as she closes her eyes, tilting her head to the side.

I move my hands from inside the blanket, sliding them underneath her body.

What starts out as a soft, slow snog soon turns into what has to be the dirtiest kiss I've ever had, all teeth and tongue, bruised lips and soft moans. After a bit, I start to slowly rut my hips down against hers, trying to see how far she wants to go with this.

Her response is to bite my bottom lip and drag her nails down my shoulders.

"Lou," she says quietly.

"What?"

She looks up at me, blinking a few times. Her eyes seem darker in the small amount of light that the fire provides, but I can tell that her pupils are already blown wide.

"Wanna," she says, out of breath.

"Wanna what?" I ask.

She huffs, as if I should already know what she's talking about.

"Wanna," she almost whines, bucking her hips up into mine. Oh.

"Are you sure?" I ask, moving a strand of her hair out of her face.

She nods, a soft smile on her face. "Yeah."

"Okay," I reply with a smile.

She leans up for a kiss, closing her eyes again as our lips meet. I slide my hands under the hem of her - well, _my_ \- shirt, tracing patterns on the soft skin above her hips. So she _is_ wearing panties, I think as I start to feel fabric under my fingers. Is that _lace_?

I pull back a little, trying to catch my breath, and move down a little to mouth at the skin on her neck. She takes a shaky breath, tugging a little on my hair as she tilts her head to one side.

I make my way down her neck, my mouth and tongue touching each inch of her soft skin, until I reach the collar of her shirt. I glance up at her face.

Her eyes are closed, her mouth half open, shaky breaths coming in and out. Her cheeks are flushed pink, her lips a bruised red. Her hands are shaky as she pulls me back up toward her, wanting another kiss.

As I slide my lips over hers, I hook my thumbs into the top of the lace panties, gently tugging them down her hips. She lifts up off the bed a little, letting me tug them down her legs, and I drop them onto the floor.

She sort of lets me slide in between her legs, but she keeps them too close together for me to really be near to her.

"Hey," I smile, tapping the insides of her knees, "open sesame."

She giggles, letting her legs fall open as she runs her hands over my shoulders.

I tug gently at the fabric that still covers her torso.

"Off please," I request quietly.

She grins, pushing me back until we're both sitting up, the blanket falling from around my shoulders. Then she crosses her arms, the little minx, and pulls her shirt over her head without a hitch, stretching her arms above her head as she drops it onto the floor.

"You are just the _best_ , did you know that?" I ask, surging forward to kiss her.

"I do now," she says as I lay her down again.

"Are you sure you wanna do this?" I ask, just to be certain.

She nods. " 'M sure."

I reach over, feeling around in my bag until I grab one of the foil packets I put inside.

"So that's why you wanted me ta leave ya alone so bad," Laura says teasingly.

"I didn't want you to think I was expecting anything," I answer.

"Were you?"

"I was hopeful. Didn't want you to feel pressured into it." I know she's had at least one bad experience, and I didn't want her to think that I was going to do the same thing.

She smiles up at me. "I love you."

"Love you too," I tell her.

She watches with hooded eyes as I rip the foil open with my teeth and roll the condom on, letting the wrapper fall to the floor. I'll pick it up in the morning.

I move over her, resting my weight on my elbows as I line myself up.

"Are you _sure_ you're sure?"

"Just get _in_ me, please," she groans.

"Yes ma'am," I say with a smile, gently sliding into her, watching her face for any sign of pain.

What I see instead is almost better than her little strip show earlier.

Her eyes keep fluttering somewhere between open and closed, her mouth falls open, and the sound she lets out is just about the hottest thing I've ever heard.

"Are you alright?" I ask once she opens her eyes again.

She nods. "Yeah, 's jus'..." she huffs out a breath. "Wow."

"You've done this before though?"

She nods again. "I have, 's jus'... yer bigger'n 'e was." Oh... I never thought of that. "Feels like I'm sittin' on a fencepost, holy shit."

"Do you wanna stop?" I ask. She shakes her head.

"No... Jus'... go slow. Lemme get used ta it."

I nod, then move backwards, going out as slowly as I can.

"You good?" I ask.

"Mhmm.. go for it."

I slide back in, watching as Laura's mouth falls open, her eyes fluttering shut. She moans loudly, the sound filling the small cabin.

I find a slow rhythm, holding back from going all out until she's alright with it.

It's tough though. Nothing I've thought of or dreamt is as good as the real thing. I can't think of anything that even comes close to comparing with the feeling of her around me, so tight and warm.

The temperature inside the room seems to rise, and I feel a layer of sweat begin to form on my skin.

I nuzzle into Laura's neck, and begin sucking on the skin behind her ear. I feel her hands in my hair, tugging at it. I take it as a signal to go a little faster, and quicken my pace.

"Faster," she murmurs, wrapping her legs around my waist. I go a bit faster, and soon her name is falling from my lips as her nails rake down my back.

I move my hand so that my thumb is in a position to rub circles right above where our bodies are connected, and within seconds she's squirming and moaning all over the place.

"Mmmm... Louis..."

I put my lips right next to her ear. "That's it, baby. Say my name," I growl, then bite down on her earlobe, making her gasp.

"Harder..." I oblige, doing as she says.

Before long, I can feel my stomach tightening, and I know I'm close.

"Laura, baby, are you almost there?" She nods, and I go even faster. I'm pretty sure my back may be bleeding a little, but I can't feel the pain right now. All I can feel is the pleasure as she clenches around me.

"Go on Laura, let go. I've got you, you're safe." My voice sounds so low that I can barely recognize it.

I feel her walls collapse around me as she screams, her back arching off of the mattress as she throws her head back.

"Louis! Oh Go- Louis!"

I let the pleasure take over, and soon I'm yelling her name, spilling into the condom.

Once I pull out of her and get rid of the condom, I collapse on top of her, exhausted.

We're both out of breath, soaked in sweat.

"So," I pant, "how was that?" I feel her laugh a little underneath me.

"You," she says, running her hand through my sweaty hair, "are insane."

I nuzzle my nose into her neck. "I love you."

I can feel her cheeks move, and I know without looking that she's smiling.

"I love you too."

We just lay there for a minute, waiting for our racing hearts to slow down a little.

"Hey, um..." she says after a little while.

"What?"

"Yer squishin' me," she tells me.

"Sorry," I say quickly, moving off of her.

"No, not that far," she whines, pulling me back down onto the mattress, "wanna cuddle."

"Okay," I laugh, turning onto my side. She burrows into my chest, her hands laying on my stomach. "Are you good now?"

"Think so. Are you?"

"Almost."

I wiggle down until I'm at eye level with her chest, then nuzzle my face in between her breasts.

"Now?"

"Perfect," I answer happily, wrapping my arms around her.

She giggles, and I feel her fingers run through my hair.

"Good. Night night."

"Night sunshine. Love you."

"Love you too, sugar."


	61. Chapter 61

Laura's Point of View

"Morning," is the first thing I hear when I open my eyes.

"Hey," I answer groggily as I blink the sleep away. Once my eyes focus, I see Louis smiling at me.

"How'd you sleep?"

"Pretty good, I s'pose," I answer, stretching my arms above my head. "How 'bout you?"

"Perfect," he answers, nosing into my neck as he wraps his arms around me.

"Th' rain didn't bother ya?"

He pauses. "It was raining?"

I nod. "Yeah. It 'as rainin' when we came inside."

"I came inside you," he says quietly.

"That explains why I'm naked."

"You are?" he asks sarcastically, looking at me. "I had no clue, it's not like your tits were in my face all night."

"Iff'n I 'member right, yer th' one who put yer face there."

"I wasn't complaining," he says. "It helped me sleep."

"That's good," I tell him, reaching up to run my fingers through his hair. He sighs happily.

"Boobs solve every problem," he says.

" _Every_ problem?"

He nods, his hands moving to cup my chest. "Yep. Could bring world peace with these thingies."

"Yer weird," I laugh.

"All yours," he answers.

"Are you hungry?"

"A little," he answers as his stomach growls.

"Iff'n ya let me up, I'll make somethin' fer ya."

He snuggles closer to me, shaking his head.

"Not yet. You're warm."

"Breakfast'll be warm too, iff'n ya let me make it," I answer.

"Nooooo..." he says, moving lower to shove his face back into my chest.

"Louis..."

"Does this bother you?" he asks. "If it does, I can stop."

I shake my head, petting his hair again. "Naw. Yer fine."

"Good. Cause I like this," he sighs, his hands moving to rest on my stomach. "Why are you so soft?"

" 'M a girl. That's how it works," I reply.

My phone starts ringing, and I reach for it, only for Louis' hand to come out of nowhere and grab it before I can.

"Hello?" he says, answering the call. "No Liam, we're still in bed."

Good thing it was Liam. If it was my father, I'm not sure it would have gone so well.

"No, we aren't getting up soon. We're gonna stay here all day," Louis sasses into the phone. "What are you talking ab- ... yes. Yes, we had sex, and it was glorious." His jaw drops, and he looks up at me. "They were taking bets on us!"

I laugh, my head falling back against the pillows.

"Now you made her laugh at me. Thank you very much, Lima Bean."

He listens for a moment, his eyes on me. As Liam talks, I see a plan forming in Louis' head.

"Well - yeah. Shut up, will you? How do you know we aren't going at it right now?"

Liam says something else, and Louis scoffs.

"Well, _of course_ I would pick up the phone, it's _you_ , Liam!" he says with a smirk. He winks at me, sliding a hand down my stomach. I lay there quietly, waiting to see what he's going to do.

"So pretty, baby," he tells me. "What? No, I'm obviously talking to Laura. Why would I call _you_ pretty?"

I giggle, and Louis smiles at me, still rubbing my stomach with his hand.

"Why do you want to talk to her? I can answer all your questions." He scoffs again. "Seriously. You act like she's smarter than me."

I raise an eyebrow, and he quickly loses the smile on his face.

"Which she might be. I mean, you never know. She probably is," he stammers. "What do you want?"

He nods as Liam asks his question, then looks at me.

"When are we gonna be back?"

"What time s'it?" I ask.

"Ten thirty."

"'Bout four."

He relays the answer to Liam, and then hands up the phone.

"So, does that mean we have to leave soon?" he asks.

I nod. "Got 'bout half 'n hour."

He groans, flopping back down next to me.

"I don't wanna go. I like it here. Just you and me."

"We can always come back," I remind him.

"We should do that," he answers.

We just lay there for a minute, the quiet of the cabin peaceful.

"Laura?"

"Hmm?"

"I'm hungry."

"Oh, _now_ yer hungry?"

"Yeeessss." He nuzzles into my neck again, wrapping his arms around me.

"I can't make ya any food iff'n I can't get up," I tell him.

"Can you make breakfast in my shirt?"

"Iff'n ya let me up."

He groans, then rolls off me. I arch my back, stretching my arms above my head, and then swing my legs off the end of the bed. I reach for his shirt, still laying on the floor from where I'd dropped it last night, the lace panties laying on top of it.

" _Jus_ ' yer shirt?" I ask.

"Yeah." Before I can even put the shirt on, he's reaching over, snatching the panties from my hand. "I'm keeping these."

"Not till we get back, you ain't."

He doesn't argue, and after I tug the shirt over my head, I stand, walking over to the stove to start on breakfast.

Harry's Point of View

"How long do we have?"

"She said we've got until four," Liam answers, setting the phone down on the kitchen table, his face red.

"Were they really..." Niall starts, stopping to clear his throat. "Going at it?"

"I mean, they might have been," Liam says, obviously still a little shocked that Louis would answer the phone during intercourse. "But you know how Louis is."

Then Liam's phone rings, and I see him panic for a second before he looks at the screen and realizes that it's not Louis.

"Hello?" he answers. "Hi Simon."

Oh.

"Friday?" he asks, his face falling as the rest of us go silent.

He nods.

And nods again.

And again.

"Alright. We'll see you then," he says before hanging up. He sets his phone on the table, and looks up at the rest of us. "Simon's going to be here Friday. We have a flight to London that leaves Saturday morning," he tells us quietly.

We're quiet for a moment, until Niall stands up, muttering that he's going to go call Ann. Zayn gets up after a little while, putting both his and Niall's plates in the sink before going upstairs, probably to call his mum.

"Louis isn't going to like hearing that," I say quietly.

"No, he's not. I don't even really want to go home yet," Liam replies. "But Louis seems to like it the best here."

He does. He's probably going to take this the hardest. I've noticed that he's been ignoring the fact that we're going to have to go home, go back to reality, eventually.

Louis' Point of View

"That was pretty good," I say as Laura sets the now empty plate on the table behind her. She's straddling my lap, and for the last few minutes, she's been feeding me forkfuls of whatever thing she made for breakfast. Biscuits with gravy, I think it was. I was a little distracted when she told me.

"Pretty good?" she asks, her hands rubbing at my shoulders.

"It was the best thing I've ever had," I correct myself, my hands sliding under the fabric of the shirt she's wearing to rest on her hips.

"Much better," she says with a smile before leaning forward to kiss me.

After about twenty minutes (which would have been about five if we weren't constantly taking breaks to tickle each other and make out), we're both dressed, and everything is packed up onto the horses.

"You ready?" Laura asks as she walks out of the cabin.

I nod as she climbs into the saddle. "Let's go home."

Niall's Point of View

"So, you're leaving on Saturday?" Ann asks, her voice a little staticky through the phone. She's out riding Cheesecake right now, she was in the barn when I called her.

"Yeah. Saturday," I answer. I've just told her about the phone call, and the flight that leaves - at noon, because Simon knew we wouldn't want to get up early - and she's staying relatively calm about it.

"You'll still be there Friday, right?"

"Yeah," I answer. "I was um... hoping we could do something before that though. Like, together."

"When would that be?"

"Well, what day is it?"

"Tuesday."

"How about tomorrow we do something?"

"Okay. That sounds good."

We talk for a little while, working out the details. Ann says that the county fair is in town, so we decide to go there.

Laura's Point of View

"I don't wanna go!" Louis nearly sobs, hugging me tightly.

"Sugar, you knew this was comin'," I say calmly, petting his hair, trying to stay calm for his sake.

The rest of the guys told us when we got home that they'd gotten another call saying that they'd be leaving for the airport on Saturday, which is four days from today.

"I know, but I still don't wanna go," he whines.

"Hey," I say, holding his face in my hands, making him look at me. "Don't worry 'bout it. Jus' enjoy bein' here till you gotta leave. You'll be a'right, awenasa."

He looks a little confused at the name, but nods anyway, and I'm thankful that he doesn't ask about it.

"Okay."

"Good. Now go get in th' truck."

"Yes ma'am." He walks out the door, and I follow, Climbing into the truck with the rest of the guys.

We're going to the county fair tonight, since it's the last night that it'll be in town.

Ann and Erica are waiting at the gate when we get there, and we all split off into pairs once we get our wristbands and go inside, agreeing to meet over at the food tent at seven.

"So what do you want to do first?" Louis asks.

I look around, until I see the ferris wheel.

"That'n," I say, pointing to it.

"Let's go then."

After we've gone on nearly all the rides, eaten enough cotton candy to turn both our tongues blue, and Louis won me a giant teddy bear, we head over to the food tent to meet the others.

"There you are!" Erica yells once she sees us. "We thought you skipped out on us."

"Nah, jus' got stuck in line fer that water gun game thing," I reply.

That line had been humongous, and we thought we'd have enough time, but it was seven when we got about two thirds of the way through it, but we didn't want to leave and not get our turn, so we stayed there. It's not like we were bored or anything.

"That line is always long," Ann says from her spot by Niall. They've got two plates in front of them, both piled high with food and candy.

I set the teddy bear down at the table, then Louis and I head over to the food trailer, grabbing something to eat before we sit down at the table with everyone else.

When we get home, it's dark. It took forever for the guys to say goodbye to Ann and Erica, otherwise we would have been home a little sooner.

After the horses are fed, we all crawl into our beds - well, I slide in with Louis.

"Did you have fun?" I ask.

"Everything's fun with you," he replies, pulling me into his chest and kissing my forehead.

"Always so cheesy," I giggle.

"You like it."

"I guess so," I admit. "You really liked it though?"

He's probably been everywhere, this must have seemed like some backwoods county fair.

"Yeah, but it's good to be home. I like it here."

I smile.

"Night sunshine," he says.

"Night sugar."


	62. Chapter 62

Liam's Point of View

The next day, we're out in the field, baling hay again. It seems fitting, the first thing we did was bale hay, and the last big project sort of thing that we're doing on the ranch is baling hay.

Except this time, Laura's laughing and talking with us, and we're all having fun. It also doesn't seem as hard as it did the first time.

It makes me think of all the things that have happened since we came here. We've learned a lot about ourselves, and how we work together as a group.

I've also come to the realization that Laura probably could bale the entire field by herself if she had to. I don't doubt that anymore.

"Hey, watch yer foot," Laura laughs as Harry almost trips her.

One thing that hasn't changed much is Harry's slight clumsiness. He's never really been able to stay completely on his feet on the hay wagons. He's gotten better over the summer.

Once all of the field is baled, we head inside, and Laura and Louis run up the stairs, laughing and giggling as they dart into her room.

That's something else I didn't expect. I thought they'd spend the entire summer being angry at each other, not fall in love. But I suppose it was a good thing. Louis had been getting a little testy with everything and everyone, and that seems to have gone away. Laura keeps him in line.

Well, more in line. Sort of.

Louis' Point of View

Once we're done with the hay, we all pile into Laura's truck - well, Laura, Liam and I do. The others wanted to stay at the ranch - and we head out to the high school for Laura's volleyball game. It's the last regular game of her season, so it's sort of a big deal for her.

When we get there, Camryn attacks Laura with the face paint, and before we walk into the gym, she's got a red handprint on her face, and after a little bit of convincing from Laura, I have one to match.

She let me wear her extra shirt with her name and number on it again, so we match as we watch the first team play, Laura leaning into my side, a bright smile on her face. Laura keeps muttering things about how the plays go, what each team is doing well, and what they should be doing.

"You would probably make a good coach," I say offhandedly.

"Ya think so?"

I nod. "Yeah, you know how to play the game, what works and what doesn't, and you're good at explaining it."

She hums, nodding as she thinks.

After about a minute, she shrugs.

"Maybe," she agrees. "You hungry?"

"A little, I guess."

She stands, and we walk hand in hand out the door and into the hallway, heading toward the concession stand.

We both get Snickers bars, and finish them before we're even halfway back, seeing who could eat theirs the fastest. I won, of course. (But it was close)

When we're almost at the doors to the gym, Camryn pokes her head out.

"We're starting warmups in a few minutes," she tells Laura before going back inside.

"Well, good luck," I say, starting to walk over to the other door that's closer to the bleachers.

"Whoah, whoah, whoah!" she says, grabbing my arm and pulling me back to her. "You fergot somethin' mister," she says sternly.

"What could I have possibly forgotten?" I ask, acting completely clueless.

"Don't I get a good luck kiss?" she asks. I raise my eyebrows.

"Do you really _need_ one?" I retort.

She laughs. "No, but I want one."

I shake my head with a smile, then lean forward, connecting our lips. Laura wraps her arms around my neck as mine snake around her waist.

I was going to go for a quick, G-rated kiss, but I guess Laura had something different in mind. She starts moving her mouth against mine, her hands moving to my hair, running through it, tugging at it.

One of my hands slides up to the back of her neck, and the other finds the small of her back, pulling her right up against me, something I've found she likes.

"Laura, where are - ooooohhhh!!!!"

Laura doesn't stop when Erica calls for her, if anything she kisses me harder, pulling my hair as the rest of the team comes out behind Erica and starts whistling and cheering at us.

I can feel her heart pounding wildly in her ribcage, pressed tight against mine, as she attempts to slide her tongue into my mouth. I pull back, though, biting her lip and tugging it a little.

"That's a bit too naughty, sunshine," I tell her, gently tapping her nose with my finger. "We aren't alone right now."

She grins, looking down at her feet.

"Sorry, got a little carried away."

"You're alright. Good luck."

She looks up at me, a bright smile on her face.

"Thanks sugar."

"No problem. Now go get 'em."

She stands up on her tiptoes, kissing my cheek.

"See ya."

She turns to walk away, and even though it probably isn't the best choice, I swing my hand forward, slapping her ass.

She jumps, then turns around to look at me as she walks away, a playful glare on her face.

I shrug. "Couldn't help myself."

She shakes her head, walking through the door and into the gym with the rest of her team.

I go back and sit with Liam, and watch as the girls warm up. Laura and Erica are partners, like usual, and at the moment, they're passing a ball back and forth between the two of them.

Before long, both teams are coming together for their huddles, and this time Camryn's going around with a small basket, giving something to each of her teammates. Then they're lining up on the endlines, and the opposing team is introduced first.

As each girl's name is called, they step forward out of line and wave at the crowd.

"And the starters for your Lady Warriors, number two, Vanessa Rose!"

The blonde girl runs to the edge of the bleachers and tosses something to a boy sitting in front of us, then turns and jogs back to her spot in line.

"Number three, Erica Cannon!"

Erica runs to the the bleachers and launches something into the air, straight at Liam. He catches it and smiles down at the short girl. A bag of candy. Neat.

Georgia, Sam, Camryn and Zoe all throw their candy bags to their boyfriends when their names are called, then take their places in line again.

"And your captain, unlucky thirteen, Laura Johnson!" Laura jogs forward, but doesn't stop at the edge of the bleachers. She runs right up them, right to me. She hands me a bag of candy with a smile and a kiss on the cheek. She grins at me, then runs back to her team, the other girls cheering at her.

They shake hands with the other team, and then get into their positions.

And by the time we go home, Laura's made the game winning kill, and the girls have had what was probably the best game of their season.

Harry's Point of View

The next morning, the first thing that I hear is a loud thud, and then Louis and Laura laughing. I assume one of them fell out of bed, because it came from the direction of their rooms. Whichever one they're in. I've noticed that they never stay in their own beds these days. It's always a sleepover with them.

It's not so bad, I guess. Just the giggling and laughing first thing in the morning is a little weird. But I guess if they're happy, that's a good thing.

Soon enough, I hear them run across the loft floor, and down the stairs, probably to start on breakfast.

After we've all eaten, we head out to the barn to put the hay that we baled yesterday into the hayloft.

Laura, Liam and I are up in the hayloft, and the other three are down on the ground with the wagon, putting the bales onto the hay elevator that takes them up to the loft.

And it's also just as hot as the last time we did it.

I'm also not wearing a shirt at the moment. It's too hot.

That is one thing I'm not going to miss. It's literally always hot here, even at night sometimes. I don't know how Laura can stand it.

She grew up here, Harry, that's why. She's used to it.

Thanks Harry, that was a good point.

You're welcome.

"Hey Haz," Liam calls down from his spot halfway up the stack of haybales, "how many are left?"

I walk over to the window, and look out.

"About ten left on this wagon," I call back. "I think this is the last one."

"Thank the lord," he says, "my arms are killing me."

"Gonna have to hit the gym soon," I joke. It is a little tough, doing things with hay bales two days in a row. It's a lot of work on the arms.

Once we're done, the others come climbing up the ladder, laughing about something.

We move the hay bales so that we can sit on them, and it brings back memories.

Except this time Laura is voluntarily laughing and joking right along with us, leaning against Louis with a bright smile on her face.

We've obviously come a long way.


	63. Chapter 63

Laura's Point of View

It's Friday. I don't want it to be Friday. It's usually my favorite day of the week, but not this week. This week, it's the worst day. Everything seems to be going too fast, and I don't like it.

It starts out with Louis poking my nose to wake me up, because he heard Niall moving around and he thought that I should get up so they could eat.

I've forbidden any of them from cooking, because - _once again_ \- they made a huge mess of my kitchen.

Ugh.

So I got up, and made Louis carry me downstairs so I could make breakfast.

After that, we (and by we I meant Louis, Niall and I) piled into the truck to take a trailer of cattle to the stockyards.

And of course we stopped at the diner, and of course Ann was there. So Louis and I laughed as Niall practically forgot how to talk when Ann walked up to take our order.

It was cute. He even went and sat at the bar counter so he could talk to her the whole time we were there.

Louis and I stayed in the booth.

And threw pancakes at each other.

He got syrup in my hair.

Then I dumped one of the jelly things down his shirt.

We may or may not have gotten a stern look from Ann.

After that, Louis and I drove back home (we left Niall there. Ann said she'd drive him back before we were supposed to feed the horses) and then we both, along with the rest of the guys, saddled up and headed out into the fields to move some of the cattle.  
  


3rd Person Point of View

When Eugene walks out the front door of the ranch house, the first thing he hears is laughter. Laura's laughter.

He can see them riding across the field, the cattle moving along with them. He can see Yankee running around, barking happily as he helps keep the cattle moving.

Laura is riding up next to Louis, smiling at him as he says something to her, then shoving at his shoulder when he makes a joke.

They're good for each other, he thinks.

"Excuse me?"

Eugene turns his head to see a man walking up the driveway.

"Afternoon, how can I help ya?" he greets, walking down to shake the man's hand.

"My name is Simon, and I'm -"

"Yer here fer my ranch hands, ain't ya?" Eugene asks, a smile on his face.

"Yes, I am," Simon answers. "But the van broke down about halfway up the driveway."

Eugene nods.

"I'll have my foreman look at it when they all come in later. Ya'll can come on up ta th' house and sit fer a while till we figure it out."   
  


A few hours later, Laura and the guys ride up to the bunkhouse, covered in dirt and mud, because they moved the cattle across the creek, and some of the calves were too small to get across by themselves.

The first thing that Laura notices is the three men sitting on the front porch of the ranch house, and her smile quickly fades.

"What's wrong?" Louis asks. When she doesn't answer, he follows where she's looking, and sees Simon sitting there, Paul next to him. "Oh."

They're here. It's time to go home.

No one calls them, but the group moves over to the porch, silently walking up the steps.

"Hello lads," Simon says with a smile, getting mumbled greetings in response.

"Laura, these folks' van broke down, 't's at th' end o' th' driveway," Eugene says.

"Yessir. I'll go look at it," she says, turning to walk back down the steps. "Louis, you comin'?"

Louis turns without hesitation, and the two of them walk over to their horses, climbing aboard and riding off down the driveway.

"What was that?" Simon asks.

"They're together," Liam answers simply. "They have been for a few weeks now."

"No, no, no, not that," Simon says, shaking his head. " _She's_ the foreman?"

"Yessir," Eugene answers, sitting up a little straighter in his rocking chair. His daughter has earned her job, contrary to what this foreigner might think. "Is there a problem with that?"

The other lads quietly grin, knowing that both Laura and her father have a bit of a stubborn streak in them. There's no doubt that they're related.

"No, no problem," Simon answers. "It's just, isn't that a little... strange?"

Before Eugene can answer, Laura and Louis come galloping back up the driveway, skidding to a stop in front of the porch railing.

"Fan belt busted," Laura says. "Can tow 'em up ta th' shop, fix it 'n there."

Eugene nods, and the two ride over to the stables.

A few minutes later, they come back out, with Rebel in a harness following along behind them.

"You're going to pull the van with that one horse?" Simon asks.

"Yessir," Laura answers firmly, just a bit of bite in her tone. "I am."

"I want to see this," Paul says as he stands, following them down the driveway. The other lads follow, Eugene walking with them, until Simon is left sitting by himself.

Well, might as well go see, he thinks as he stands, following the group down the driveway.

When the now large group of people reaches the van, which is pretty big, the size of a small moving van, Laura hooks Rebel up, and even the big horse looks a little smaller in comparison to the vehicle.

"Are you sure he can-" Liam starts, suddenly doubtful.

"Sure 'e can," Laura answers. Then an idea pops into her head. "Hey Mr. Shiny Shoes, how 'bout you steer? Jus' in case?"

Everyone turns to Simon, who had foolishly chosen to wear his new dress shoes to come and get the lads.

He grumbles a little under his breath, but steps forward anyway, climbing into the cab.

"I still don't think one horse can pull this," he says.

Eugene smirks, then says,

"Why don't we all have a ride? Would that be a'right, Laura?"

The brunette turns to her father, her eyes mirroring his, full of mischief.

"That's a great idea," she agrees. She turns to the others standing there. "Go on, hop in th' back."

After all of them have climbed into the back of the moving van, except for Laura and Louis, Simon leans out the window of the van.

"Are we going to move, or will we just sit here all day?"

"You jus' keep yer shoes on, mister," Laura says, walking over to stand by Rebel's head. "Make sure I ain't gonna walk inta nothin'," she tells Louis as she leans her forehead on Rebel's, muttering something in Cherokee.

Then she's grabbing both sides of the bridle, and gently tugging. Rebel takes one steps forward, then two backward.

"C'mon, baby," Laura says quietly, and Rebel answers with a nicker. Laura smiles, then steps back, still grasping the bridles in her hands. "C'mon, little man."

Rebel nickers again, then lunges forward, his hooves digging into the dirt of the driveway, throwing his weight against the collar around his neck.

The van starts to roll forward, slowly but surely moving up the driveway.

Laura walks backward as Rebel moves forward, each of their feet moving at the same time, even though they're looking each other straight in the eye.

Rebel keeps a steady pace, smoothly pulling the van up the driveway.

About halfway there, he snorts once, then stops.

"What's wrong with him?" Simon shouts out the open window.

"Havin' a breather," Laura yells back, "keep yer shoes on."

Rebel stands still for a moment, and then moves his head up and down a couple times.

"Ready, little man?" Laura asks, and Rebel responds with a snort.

Laura smiles, then tugs on the bridle again. Rebel leans forward again, pushing against the weight of the collar, and the van begins to move again.

Once he's got a steady pace going again, Rebel lunges forward again, his feet beginning to move faster along the driveway, the van following along behind him.

"That's it," Laura praises, moving faster along with her horse.

Soon Rebel is trotting, and before very long, Laura's pulling him to stop in front of the shop in the big barn next to the stables.

"Good job, little man," she says as she unhooks him from the van.   
  


Once the van's pushed into the shop, most everyone leaves to go sit on the front porch again, leaving just Laura and Louis in the shop.

"So, this means we're leaving tomorrow," Louis says quietly as he sits and watches Laura work.

"Yep."

"So we probably won't see each other for... a while."

Laura pauses.

"Nope."

Louis sighs, his head in his hands.

"Does this even bother you?" he asks angrily.

Laura sighs, then turns around, walking over to him. Once in front of him, she gently pushes at his shoulders until he's leaning far enough back for her to climb into his lap, one leg on either side of him.

"Louis, does it look like I ain't bothered?" she asks quietly.

He looks up at her, and sees that she has tears in her eyes.

"D'ya know how much I wanna slash them tires? Or tell 'em we ain't got th' right belt fer it?"

She reaches up, running her greasy fingers through his sweaty, matted hair.

"I don't want ya ta leave," she says, sniffling quietly.

"I don't want to leave," Louis says, leaning his head on her shoulder. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

"Yer fine," Laura replies. "It ain't yer fault."

"Yeah, but I wish there was a way this could work out so that I didn't have to leave. I don't want to leave you here... without me."

Laura nods, knowing that he means he doesn't want to leave her, because he knows about what goes on in her head, and he's thinking about how she's been left before, and he doesn't want to be like that.

"I know, sugar. You ain't like that," she says.

"I love you sunshine," he says.

"Love you too," Laura says with a smile as a stray tear slides down her cheek. Louis catches it, sliding his thumb across her skin before kissing her cheek.

"Would you really slash tires for me?" he asks.

"Yeah. Only three though," Laura replies.

"What?" he asks, picking his head up to look at her. "Why just three?"

"Cause iff'n ya slash all four, then th' insurance'll cover it. Iff'n ya only do three, they gotta pay fer it themselves," Laura answers calmly.

"And _how_ do you know that?" Louis asks incredulously.

"Learn a lotta stuff out here," she says as she moves a stray lock of hair out of his eye. "You'll get it eventually."

"I hope so," Louis says with a smile.  
  


They sit like that for a little while, until Laura gets up to keep working on the van. Once she puts the hood back down, they head up to the main house for supper, and then after washing the dishes, they crawl into Laura's bed, avoiding Louis' suitcases that are scattered around the floor.

When Liam had asked, Simon had told them that they were staying at the ranch that night (he had already worked it out with Eugene), so Laura had told Louis to move his stuff into her room so that someone else could use his room. Liam and Harry had chosen to double up, leaving another room for another person.

When they pull the covers up over their shoulders, Louis and Laura don't go to sleep right away. They sort of just lay there, looking at each other, both of them wanting to memorize each detail of the others face, and even though they've seen each other every day for the past three months, it seems like there are so many little things that they've missed.

They don't really talk, they just look. Because they won't be able to this time tomorrow.


	64. Chapter 64

Louis walks back from the kitchen, stopping when he gets to the doorway of Laura's room, leaning on the door frame with a soft smile on his face.

She's still asleep, sprawled out on the bed, her hair spread out over the pillows. She's moved since he left to get his morning tea. Her body is farther over on the bed, more of her on his side than hers.

It's different, watching her sleep. Sure, they've shared a bed before, but it doesn't seem the same today. Today's probably the last day Louis will be able to see her like this for a while. Maybe months.

He doesn't want to leave. It's so peaceful here, like a separate world, cut off from the rest of everything. It's like they're in their own little bubble.

She stirs, then moves a little, turning her face into the pillow and snuggling into it, mumbling something incoherent. Now she's got an entire leg sticking out from under the blankets, her tan skin a stark contrast against the blue of the sheets.

Louis shakes his head, walking over to set his mug of tea on the nightstand before running his finger up the bottom of Laura's bare foot.

She moves, kicking her foot out before turning over.

"Sunshine," Louis says, his smile getting wider.

"Mmmm-mmm."

Louis crawls onto the bed, then traces patterns on her leg.

"You gotta get up, babe."

She moves again, this time toward Louis instead of away.

"Darling..." he tries again. "Come on, where are those pretty eyes?"

She nuzzles into his leg, and her eyelids flutter open, staying half shut as she blinks sleepily at him, looking like a sleepy kitten with her hair all over the place.

"There they are," Louis says as he brushes a strand of hair from her face.

"What time 's it?" she asks groggily.

Louis looks at the clock. "Eight thirty."

"Really?" she asks. "Why'd ya wake me up so early?"

"You're usually up at seven, sunshine," Louis reminds her. They did stay up a bit later than usual last night though.

"Shut up," she says with a sleepy smile. "I was havin' a good dream."

"What about?" he asks, laying down next to her, his fingers running through her hair.

"Stuff," she says, laughing a little bit. She moves so that she's laying on top of him, tucking her face into his neck. "You smell good."

"Thanks sunshine," he says with a smile. He turns his face into her hair, taking a deep breath. "Love you."

"Love you too," Laura replies, her hands sliding over his arms.

They both know the weight of today. What it will mean when they finally have to get up, and neither one says anything about it. They don't have to though. They talked it out last night.

When they hear people moving around downstairs, neither of them move.

They don't let go of each other until they hear a soft knock on the door and Harry peeks his head in.

"Laura? Louis?" he asks quietly.

"What, Haz?" Louis replies.

"Simon's saying we should leave by ten," Harry tells them softly.

"Okay," Louis says, squeezing Laura tighter. "What time 's it?"

"Nine fifteen," Harry says. "Liam's making pancakes if you two want any."

He turns to walk out the door, and Laura softly says,

"Close th' door please."

Harry nods, and grabs the doorknob, pulling the door shut behind himself.

"Why did he have to shut the door?" Louis asks as he runs his fingers through Laura's hair.

"Cause I ain't wearin' pants, an' in theory we oughta get dressed," Laura replies.

"If I don't then Simon won't let me out in public," Louis muses.

"I've seen pictures of you walkin' 'round without yer shoes 'fore, I don't think not havin' a shirt is gonna be a problem," Laura argues.

Louis smiles and sits up, still holding Laura close.

"Love you," he says again.

"Love you too sugar."

When they finally pull themselves out of bed around nine thirty, they slowly get dressed, neither of them mentioning what's happening today.

They walk down the stairs in silence, each of them carrying one of Louis' suitcases, their joined hands gently swinging between them.

"There you are," Simon says once he sees them. "I thought we'd have to come get you. We're leaving at -"

"Ten. I know," Louis says shortly.

The suitcases are set down by the door, where the rest of the guys' stuff is, still too much in Laura's opinion, and then make their way into the kitchen, filling a couple plates before sitting down at the table.

Simon tries to talk to them, but most of the guys aren't listening. They're busy thinking about how much they'll be leaving behind in just a few hours.

For Liam, it's mostly Erica that he's thinking about. He's pretty sure that she's good with the long distance thing, but he still worries that she'll get tired of waiting for him to come back.

Niall, of course, is thinking about the probability of getting Simon to stop at the diner before they go to the airport. Not just for the food, of course, but so that he can see Ann one more time. They've talked over everything, and decided that they'll skype and call each other as often as they can, and text whenever they can't talk. Niall's pretty sure that he and Ann can keep in touch.

Harry and Zayn are mostly thinking about how they won't have as much freedom to choose what they're going to do. It's going to be back to schedules and meetings every other day, and press conferences and concerts. No more riding around the ranch for fun, or laying out in the fields trying to figure out what shapes the clouds are making.

It's no secret what is on Louis' mind. It's written all over his face that he doesn't want to leave Laura. It feels as if he's just gotten her, and he's going to lose her.

He knows that they'll stay connected - they both have phones and computers - but it won't feel the same as it has the past few weeks. They won't be sleeping in the same house, they won't be within earshot of each other, just a yell away. There's going to be thousands, maybe even millions of miles between them for who knows how long.

"And once we get things started back up, you lads are going to keep going on your tour," Simon says.

"The American tour?" Louis asks.

Simon nods. "Yes, the one you were going to start before this whole thing happened."

"Are we stopping in Alabama?"

Simon furrows his eyebrows. "Why would you stop in Alabama? There's nothing out here."

Louis scowls, his eyes darting between Laura and Simon. Liam raises an eyebrow at Simon, and Niall crosses his arms.

"Of course, we could always add some more stops in," Simon amends once he realizes what they mean. "A couple more concerts wouldn't hurt."

Louis nods, then stands with his empty plate in hand.

"Good."

He walks over to the sink, then slides his boots on before walking out the door, Laura a few steps behind him.

The grass is a vibrant green, tall enough to bend in the slight breeze, giving the illusion of waves over the fields that surround the ranch. The sky is a lovely shade of turquoise, a few white clouds floating in the expanse.

It's warm out, but not nearly as hot as it has been for the past couple months. Just right for a long ride out to the creek, or for laying out in the grass and watching the clouds.

The horses are out in the paddocks, trotting around and rolling in the grass, happy to be outside.

Louis and Laura make their way out to the fence, going over to where Frodo is trotting up to the fence, Rebel behind him.

"I guess I'll see you later, big guy," Louis says as Frodo sticks his head over the fence. The horse seems to almost furrow his eyebrows - that's funny, Louis thinks to himself, horses don't have eyebrows - and he nickers, rubbing his nose against Louis' shoulder. "I know, I'll miss you too," Louis says with a sad smile.

With one last pat, he turns and walks back to where Laura's standing, waiting for him.

"They're waitin' on you," she says quietly as he wraps his arms around her. "All th' stuff's packed up."

"They can wait a little longer," Louis mutters.

"How long 'fore you can come back?" Laura asks softly. She's so quiet that Louis almost doesn't hear the question.

"Simon said we have a break in three months. Do you want me to come here?" Louis asks.

"Iff'n you wanna," Laura replies. "I don't wanna keep ya away from yer family."

"I'll see them when I go home," Louis tells her. "If we're in America, it makes more sense to come see you."

"Okay. I'll be here."

"Right here?"

"Yessir. I ain't goin' nowhere."

A car horn sounds in the quiet atmosphere, startling both Louis and Laura.

"S'pose they're gettin' impatient," Laura says.

"They'll be fine. I don't want to go," Louis says. "D'you think if we miss the flight that we'll be able to stay another night?"

"Prob'ly not, sugar," Laura says.

"It was worth a shot." Louis sighs. "I'm gonna miss you."

"Gonna miss you too," Laura says. "Yer gonna make me cry."

"No, please don't cry, I'm sorry," Louis rushes out. "I can't stand it when you cry."

Laura smiles sadly, then pushes herself up onto her tiptoes to kiss Louis, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"Don't you ferget me," she says quietly, her voice cracking slightly.

"Don't cry, you're gonna make me cry," Louis says, hugging her tighter. "Three months. That's it. I'll call you at least once a week, and we can text too."

"I know, but it ain't th' same," Laura says, hiccuping a little.

The car horn pierces the air again, this time a little more insistently.

"You prob'ly oughta get goin'," Laura says."Planes don't wait ferever."

"Yes ma'am."

Louis takes Laura by the hand, and they start to walk over toward where the van is sitting. But they don't get two steps before Louis is pulling Laura back in, pressing her up against a tree, and kissing her with all he's got.

"Don't wanna leave," he says between kisses. "Love you."

"Love you too," Laura says, tangling her fingers in his hair. She hooks her leg around him, pulling his body closer to hers.

They kiss until they can't breathe, until they can't tell whose arms are who's, until the car horn is constantly beeping, but they can't hear it, so it doesn't matter. Their hands are everywhere, wanting to feel every inch of each other before they can't anymore.

When Louis finally pulls back, he watches Laura's eyes slowly flutter open again, sadly looking up at him. He takes her hand, and they walk over to where the others are waiting.

Laura barely registers the feeling of the other four lads hugging her, telling her their goodbyes, and that they'll come back and visit when they can. She manages to smile for them, seeming as if she's not falling apart on the inside.

All of them shake Eugene's hand, thanking him for giving them the job, and letting them stay on his ranch for the summer. He returns the handshake, until he gets to Louis, when he chooses to hug him instead.

"Good luck, uwesti," he says quietly.

"Thank you," Louis answers as he feels the tears pressing against the backs of his eyes.

Eugene pats him on the back, then lets him step away, over to Laura.

Louis takes her hands in his, looking at her watery eyes.

"Love you," he says as he leans his forehead on hers.

"Love you too awenasa," she says.

Louis pulls her close, just holding her in his arms while he still can.

They stay like that for what seems like an eternity, but in reality it's only a couple minutes before Louis loosens his grip, letting Laura look up at him.

"Well, I'll see you later then," he says.

Laura nods, trying her best not to cry. "Yep."

"I love you. Don't forget that," Louis says insistently.

"Yessir. I won't ferget," Laura replies. "I love you too."

Louis nods, then lets his arms fall down to his sides, stepping back.

He doesn't turn away from Laura until he backs into the door of the van, and then it's because he doesn't want to trip that he looks down before he switches his gaze back to her.

Laura's father lays his hand on her shoulder, and she's thankful for the comfort it gives her.

Once Louis is inside the van, Paul slides the door shut, and Louis puts his hand on the window as Simon starts to drive away.

Laura raises her hand into the air, waving at him as he looks out the window, following her with his eyes.

It hits her, then, as the van drives away, that it's going to be three months until she sees him, any of them, again, and the weight of it nearly makes her fall down.

But she doesn't. Instead, she starts running.

Louis has resigned himself to silently staring out the window at the fields, when he hear a shrill whistle, followed by a loud neigh, and then Rebel is running along the fenceline, Laura right next to him. She grabs a fistful of mane, and jumps onto the big horse's back, both of them moving quickly, keeping pace with the van.

Louis gasps quietly, putting his hand against the window, leaning against it as he tries to get closer to Laura.

He thinks she looks like a vision, her hair flying back from her face, her eyes bright in the sunshine. Something sent straight from heaven.

She looks so wild and free, like something out of the movies, not real life. Definitely not something that he'd be lucky enough to call his.

The van reaches the end of the driveway, and turns onto the road. Laura doesn't hesitate to turn Rebel toward the fence, both of them flying over it easily, Laura never looking away from Louis.

It's then that she starts to fall behind, because Simon isn't wasting any time.

So she turns onto the grass, following the curve of the road to where she can get to the top of a hill.

When the van rounds the curve, Louis can see her again. She pulls Rebel to a stop, and he rears up on his back legs. Laura raises her hand in a final wave, her hair blowing wildly around her face.

It's the last thing Louis sees of her before the van turns again, down another dusty dirt road.

It's then that Simon finally decides to turn on the radio.

 

_Wild thing, I think I love you..._


	65. Epilogue

Five years later...

The first thing Louis sees when he gets off the plane two days before Christmas is a crowd of people.

It's nothing new, he sees this pretty much every day. What's different today is where he is.

After signing about two dozen pieces of paper, sixteen photos of himself, and having to figure out three different kinds of smartphone cameras, he's pulled into a black car, and then speeding off down the road.

As he looks out the window, he thinks that it's been awhile since he's been here. At least six months this time, the longest yet.

The grass seems greener this time, the sky bigger and more boundless. As the car goes further and further into the back woods, Louis feels himself relax.

He smooths out his shirt, which is a little wrinkled from the long plane ride, and the fight to get through the crowd. It's her favorite shirt on him, that's why he's wearing it. There are a couple dusty patches on his jeans, and a few scuffs on his boots.

It seems like forever since he's put them on, though he wore them a week ago, before they started more promos for their next tour.

Another tour that will keep him away from home.

But that's the last thought on his mind now. He's counting the miles until he can see her.

He's going home.

When the car stops again, the engine cutting out, Louis opens his door, breathing in the crisp, clean air as he steps out, clutching a small box with Laura's name on it in his hands.

It's more humid than what he's been exposed to lately, but that doesn't really matter. There's also snow where he's been the past few days.

He directs the driver to put his stuff in the bunkhouse, where they'll be staying like they always do, and then straightens his shirt again as he makes his way toward the front porch steps.

Once he's at the front door, he takes a deep breath. He can hear the excited chatter of the people inside, half of it in English, the other half in Cherokee.

It's always made him nervous, having to talk to Laura's family. He's scared that he'll say the wrong word and insult someone beyond forgiveness, and then be shunned forever.

He knows they aren't that extreme. Laura taught him most of what he knows, and she was very patient when he would get the words wrong, helping him until he could piece together the sentences himself.

When he feels ready, Louis pushes the door open, the familiar creak of the worn wood an almost comforting sound to him.

"Louis!" Nani says as she sees him. She's the closest to the door, so she's the first to spot him as he walks inside.

"Nani!" Louis replies, a smile taking over his face as he leans over to hug the elderly woman. Louis hands her the small box in his hands, politely asking if she'll put it under the tree for him, which she agrees to do.

The old woman pinches his cheek, muttering something about how he's grown up so much since she's seen him last.

"hatlvno Lomasi ?" (Where's Laura?) he asks after a little bit of conversation. Nani shakes her head with a smile.

"nasigiageyv nahnahilvtlv ," (She's somewhere around here) she replies fondly.

"Wado," (Thank you) Louis says before moving on to the next room.

The next few rooms that he walks through are pretty much the same. Someone sees him, and they talk for a bit, then Louis asks if they've seen Laura, and they say that she's somewhere around the house.

Laura's always been good at hide and seek.

But when Louis rounds the corner into the big room where Laura keeps all of her books, he thinks he's found her.

There's a huge blanket fort taking up most of the room, sheets hanging from bookshelves, and pillows everywhere on the floor.

"An' then th' wolf says, 'then I'll huff, an' puff, an' blow th' house down!'" he hears Laura's voice say, followed by a few small gasps.

"Then what happened?" someone asks.

"I'm gettin' there," Laura sasses. Louis can hear her turning a page in a book, then clearing her throat. "So then he huffs, an' 'e puffs, an' BLOWS TH' HOUSE DOWN!"

Louis chooses that moment to pull the corner of one of the sheets from it's spot under a book, letting the ceiling of the fort fall down onto the people inside.

There's quite a few screams, and one loud laugh as the fort collapses, and then Louis can see small lumps moving around underneath the blankets, trying to find their way out. There's one big lump, though, that quickly finds it's way over to him, and then a hand reaches out to grab his ankle.

Louis bends down, pulling the sheet up to find Laura looking up at him.

"Hey!" she says, her face lighting up once she realizes who it is. She practically tackles him to the floor, kissing his cheek over and over again. "When did you get here?"

"About twenty minutes ago," he answers with a smile, pushing a piece of hair behind her ear.

"Louis!"

By now most of Laura's younger cousins have seen Louis enough times to recognize him, and that usually leads to them jumping all over him whenever they see him.

It's how they greet everyone, Laura swears.

She'd warned Louis about it when he first met all of them. The kids quickly figured out that both Louis and Laura together is more fun than just Laura, so now every time there's a thing where the family is all together, everyone is asking about Louis.

"Hey!" he smiles as all seven of them join the pile of bodies on the floor. Good thing there are lots of pillows. "What are you lot doing?"

"Lomasi was readin' us a story," one of them answers. Jenny, Louis remembers. She's always got her hair up in pigtails with blue bows at the ends.

"Yeah, an' then the roof fell down!" another chimes in. This one's name is tougher for Louis to remember, but after his twin starts talking about how they made the fort, it's easier to tell that the first one is Benjamin and the second one is Noah.

They lay around on the floor for awhile, talking about how Benjamin lost one of his front teeth when Noah threw the remote to him, and how Noah didn't really mean to hit him in the face, he just wasn't paying attention, that's what went wrong.

And Jenny's sister Violet tells him about her new pony, and how her name is Lavender, and she thinks that's just the neatest thing ever, because both of their names are a shade of purple, and Louis nods along with the story, listening intently, not noticing that Laura's smiling so wide that it looks like her face will crack in half.

After the triplet cousins, Dandy, Daniel, and Delilah finish telling him about their week at the fair - it was their _first_ one, and they all got blue ribbons with their rabbits - Nani calls everyone into the dining room for lunch, and the kids quickly scramble to their feet at the promise of food.

"So how've ya been?" Laura asks as Louis offers a hand to help her to her feet.

"Pretty good," he answers. "You?"

"Perdy good," she says. "Better, now that yer here."

Louis smiles, wrapping his arm around her waist as they walk into the dining room where everyone else is.

They stand for a moment while Nani tells everyone what each crock pot has in it, and then all the kids run forward, eager to be the first through the line.

After they've claimed their seats at the kids' table - because yes, they're sitting with the kids - Louis and Laura go through the line, filling their plates with almost everything that's on the counter in the kitchen.

While they eat, Laura talks excitedly with the kids about what sort of things they think they're going to get when they open presents later, while Louis slowly gets quieter.

The nerves are starting to take over.

He's prepared what he's going to say, and gone over about a billion times, but there's still a small part of him that thinks he'll mess it up.

So as he sees everyone starting to move toward the living room, where the giant Christmas tree is, he excuses himself to the bathroom for a moment.

Once the door is shut, he leans his hands on the counter, looking at his reflection in the mirror.

"I've got this," he tells himself. "I can do it."

He goes over the words a couple times, checking google to make sure they're right, because google never lies.

After a few deep breaths, he steels himself for going back out.

But before he can get himself to move, there's a soft knock at the door.

"Sugar?" Laura's voice calls through the wood. "You a'right?"

"Yeah, just fine," he replies. He looks at his reflection one more time before he opens the door, a bright smile on his face once he sees Laura. "They aren't waiting on me, are they?"

Laura nods, a small smile on her face.

"They didn't wanna leave ya out," she says gently, taking his hand.

They walk into the living room, where a reclining chair has been left open for them. Louis sits down first, pulling Laura into his lap, and then the gift giving commences.

Jenny gets new hairbows, and a few books that she's been wanting, and her sister gets about the same thing, except all of her gifts are a purple color, while Jenny's are blue.

The triplets get matching shirts that say 'mom likes me best,' and sleds that Jack made himself.

Noah and Benjamin each get a new Nerf gun, with strict orders not to shoot them until they get home.

In the few Christmases that he's spent with Laura's family, Louis has learned that if certain things aren't said, not everyone assumes that things are supposed to happen a certain way.

After the kids are done with their presents, they all run to the tree, each of them grabbing a present to take to the person whose name is on it.

"This one's fer you, Lomasi," Daniel says as he hands her the small box. Laura thanks him with a smile, setting the box in her lap, waiting to open it until everyone else has gotten theirs.

Jenny hands Louis his present, a medium sized box that he can tell was wrapped by Laura, judging by the way the corners of the wrapping paper have been folded.

He shakes it gently as Laura watches in amusement, trying to figure out what's in it. There's a small rattle, but not enough to tell him what it could be.

They start with the oldest of the adults, so Laura and Louis are the last to open their presents.

Nani gets a new shawl from Papi, who gets a new knife sharpener.

They're into giving each other practical gifts now, Nani had told Louis the first Christmas that he'd been with them. They've been around long enough that they've gone through all the sweet and thoughtful things, so they give each other things that they need.

Quite a few pairs of aunts and uncles later, Eugene and Jack exchange their gifts. Neither one has a wife, so they decided a few years ago to get each other something every year. Coincidentally, they both give the other a new pipe, hand carved from the looks of them. It gets a laugh out of everyone sitting around the room, and eases Louis' nerves a little.

"You next," Laura tells him after a few more pairs of aunts and uncles open their gifts.

"Why me first?" Louis asks as he starts to tear the paper.

"Yer older'n me, silly," Laura laughs.

That's how it goes every year, Louis thinks to himself. He always gets it stuck in his head that Laura should go first, but this family does some things different.

Once the paper is off, Louis looks at the box.

"You got me a watch?" he asks curiously. Laura isn't usually one for practical gifts.

"Open th' box an' see," she tells him with a grin.

He does as he's told, pulling the lid off of the box, and when he sets it on the armrest to look inside, the box falls open.

And on each of the sides there are pictures. So many pictures.

There are papers folded accordion style to fit all of them inside, but there's so many pictures, all of Laura and Louis over the years.

"Did you make this?" he asks as he looks them over. Laura nods.

There's one of him asleep in bed the summer they met, Laura's smiling face next to his.

Another from when they sent Laura and the girls tickets to one of their concerts, and they had been out in the crowd.

There's a few of the time that Louis brought Laura along for part of the tour - they had gone through three different states, the first time Laura had left Alabama - and she had so much fun that she hadn't wanted to to go home at first.

There's exactly two from the time that they went to the drive in - Louis remember Laura taking those, he thinks - and saw the new Avengers movie in 2015.

There's at least seven from their two year anniversary, when they had gone to see Josh Turner in concert - that one had been a surprise for Laura, and Louis had to make up so many stories to get her into the truck that day - and a few spots that are missing pictures.

"So you can put more in there," Laura says when Louis looks up at her confusedly.

Louis smiles, hugging Laura tightly.

"Thanks sunshine, I love it," he says with a smile.

"Yer welcome, sugar," Laura replies.

"Your turn now, Lomasi," Jenny says excitedly from her spot on the floor in front of them.

Laura smiles, then starts to tear the wrapping paper off of the box.

Louis' hands start to shake.

"Oooh! A box!" she says excitedly once she sees the cardboard underneath the paper.

"It's _in_ the box, silly," Louis says, laughing nervously along with everyone else.

She nods, then starts to pull at the tape on the edges of the box.

Louis suddenly can't catch his breath.

"Wha-? Another box?" she asks, sort of laughing as she pulls out a tiny velvet covered box from the small box in her lap.

"Open it," Louis says quietly.

He thinks he's going to have a heart attack if she doesn't open it soon.

Laura looks at him curiously before she does as he says, because she knows what sort of things come in velvet covered boxes, and if he bought her _another_ thousand dollar necklace, she's going to -

" _Oh_."

Louis nervously looks up at Laura, who is captivated by the box she's holding. One hand covers her mouth, shaking a little bit.

It's not a huge ring, but Louis knew she wouldn't want a big diamond. Laura isn't like that. So he went with a simple gold band that had three of the sparkly jewels along the top.

It took him three months to actually buy it, and another two for it to get to him.

He won't _ever_ tell Laura how much it cost.

Laura looks at him, her eyes watery, silently asking if it's what she thinks it is.

Louis smiles softly, then quietly asks,

"wili nihi degegatsvsdisgv ayv?" (Will you marry me?)

The room goes silent, and Louis swears that he's going to pass out. He keeps his eyes locked on Laura, his hands shaking where they sit at her waist.

It feels like forever before she moves her head, and when she does, it's only a slight nod, one that Louis would have missed if he weren't watching as close as he is.

"Yes," she nearly whispers, nodding a little faster, and Louis still can't breathe, but the feeling of an imminent heart attack is lessening just a little.

A bright smile spreads across his face as she repeats her answer, nodding more vigorously now, making sure he knows that yes, she'll gladly marry him.

Everyone in the room cheers when he slides the ring onto her finger, then pulls her closer. She buries her wide grin in his shoulder, her eyes sparkling as she glances up at her father sitting across the room from them on the couch.

Louis is nearly crying when Laura pulls back, and it takes him a second to compose himself before he can look up at her.

Laura looks like she's having the same problem, a wide grin splitting her face in half while the tears in her eyes are threatening to spill over.

"I love you," she says.

"Love you too," Louis replies.

The End


End file.
